Fighting 


Indians ! 


A.  F.  MULFORD. 


FIGHTING  INDIANS 

IN  THE 

7th  United  States  Cavalry 

Ouster's  Favorite  Regiment 
BY 


AMI  FRANK  MULFORD 

n 

Member  of  Company  "  M." 


PUBLISHED  BY 

PAUL  LINDSLEY  MULFORD 
CORNING,  N.  Y. 


LOAN  STACK 


FOREWORD. 

These  chronicles  of  stirring  events  were  written 
since  my  discharge  from  the  Seventh  United  States 
Cavalry,  with  both  legs  paralyzed,  due  to  injuries 
received  at  the  time  of  the  final  surrender.  This 
regiment  was  made  famous  by  that  intrepid  Com 
mander,  General  George  A.  Custer,  and  by  the  effi 
cient  service  of  its  units  which  hastened  the  end  of 
Indian  hostilities  in  the  Great  Northwest 

Sitting  Bull  was  the  most  resourceful  War  Chief 
ever  known,  at  the  time  of  the  Custer  Massacre  he 
led  the  largest  and  best  equipped  force  of  Indian 
Warriors  that  ever  attacked  United  States  soldiers 
The  object  of  the  uprising  was  to  gain,  and  hold 
absolute  possession  of  the  lands  of  their  ancestors, 
for  themselves,  for  their  children  and  their  children's 
children,  for  all  time.  These  hostiles,  five  thousand 
strong,  were  attacked  by  a  few  hundred  soldiers  led 
by  Custer,  June  25th,  1876,  and  Custer  and  his  men 
were  all  killed.  Not  on  was  spared. 

This  Massacre  marked  the  beginning  of  the  end 
Uncle  Sam  met  the  challenge.  Hostiles  bands  were 
hunted  down,  and  Sitting  Bull  was  captured. 

The  next  year  Chief  Joseph,  realizing  that  Indians 
could  not  by  force  get  or  hold  possession  of  their  hunt 
ing  grounds,  attempted  to  lead  a  general  exodus  of 
natives  into  British  America.  Joseph  had  under  his 
command,  for  the  protection  of  the  mass  of  refugees, 
a  fighting  force  larger  and  better  armed  than  were 
the  soldiers  under  Miles,  to  whom  he  surrendered. 

The  careful  preparation  of  "  copy  "  for  this  book, 
taking  the  reader  from  the  recruiting  office  at  Fort 
Leavenworth,  through  the  Bad  Lands  of  the  North 
west,  picturing  the  actualities  of  my  soldier  life  in 
the  Big  Campaign  that  ended  Indian  hostilities,  has 
prevented  the  tedium  of  many  an  hour  of  unbearable 
idleness. 

A.  F.  MULFORD, 

Late  Trumpeter  Co.  M,  7th  U.  S.  Cavalry. 
Corning,  N.  Y.,  March  25,  1878. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS 


CHAPTER  ONE. 

Arrive  On  Foot  and  Alone  at    Fort  Leavenworth,  Having 

Decided  to  Join  the  Seventh  Cavalry — Become  a  Soldier 

—It's  Mush,    Mush,  Mush  !— Eyes  the  the  Front ! 

IN  1876,  Leavenworth,  Kansas,  was  a  small,  dusty, 
straggling  attempt  at  a  city,  and  although  it  boasted 
of  modern  government  and  did  have  a  Mayor,  it  was 
way  behind  many  smaller  Eastern  towns  in  the 
matter  of  push,  population,  vim,  capital,  and  manu- 
facturies  that  now  abound  there. 

Money  was  tight  and  hard  to  get,  and  although 
there  was  plenty  of  work,  there  were  a  great  many 
out  of  employment,  and  to  make  it  still  worse,  also 
were  out  of  money — which  was  the  case  with  one 
man  I  will  make  you  acquainted  with  before  we  are 
through  with  this  history. 

There  was  a  poor  mud  road  leading  from  the  city 
to  Fort  Leavenworth,  and  one  mild  evening  a 
young  man  might  have  been  seen  trudging  wearily 
up  the  hill.  He  soon  reached  the  Fort  and  inquired 
the  way  to  the  Adjutant's  office,  and  also  asked  if 
there  was  a  recruiting  officer  at  the  Fort  ? 

No  trouble  to  find  them,  and  I  soon  enter  the 
office  and  stand  in  the  presence  of  one  of  Uncle 
Sam's  own  officers ! 

Who  can  describe  my  feelings  ?  I  can't !  There 
was  a  hot  streak,  a  cold  streak,  and  twenty-five  or 
thirty  other  streaks,  all  streaking  it  together  ! 

I  saluted  in  true,  formal  military  style,  (or  I  tried 
to)  as  I  entered  and  found  that  the  Adjutant  was 
really  awake ;  I  at  first  thought  that  he  was  asleep. 

Putting  on  a  bold  front,  I  asked: 

"  Sir,  can  I  enlist  in  the  army  ?" 

The  officer  looked  at  me  a  moment,  then  asked: 


6  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

"  Have  you  ever  been  in  the  service  ?" 

"  No,  Sir ;  I  have  not,  but  I  think  that  I  should  like 
it,  if  there  was  plenty  to  do,"  I  replied. 

If  I  had  of  known  then  a  tith  of  what  I  know  now 
about  the  Regular  Army,  I  do  not  think  that  the  offi 
cers,  or  Uncle  Sam,  would  have  ever  been  troubled 
with  business  on  my  account. 

After  looking  me  over  from  head  to  foot,  and 
quietly  smiling,  the  Adjutant  accompanied  me  to  the 
door  and  said  to  a  soldier  who  was  standing 
near:  "  Sargeant,  take  this  man  to  your  mess  for  to 
night  !  We  will  examine  him  in  the  morning !" 

Following  the  Sargeant,  I  soon  reached  the  men's 
quarters,  but  a  short  distance  away.  Arriving  there  I 
was  shown  to  a  wash-trough,  and,  after  removing  a 
coating  of  Kansas  dirt,  I  was  conducted  to  the  mess 
room,  where  I  was  soon  taking  in  with  eyes  and 
mouth. 

It  was  a  long  room,  no  chairs,  bare  wooden  tables, 
wooden  benches  to  sit  on;  a  tin  plate,  with  a  knife 
and  fork  beside  each,  arranged  in  order,  are  all  we 
see  on  the  tables. 

Soldiers  soon  march  in  and  seat  themselves  at  the 
tables,  and  then  in  come  the  suppers ! 

What's  this  dish  that  is  set  before  us  ? 

Mush  and  molasses ! 

Yes,  that  is  what  stares  us  in  the  face  and  makes 
us  turn  pale  !  If  there  is  anything  on  earth  we  hate 
it  is  mush,  and  now,  after  leaving  our  home  in  far 
away  Corning,  N.  Y.,  to  run  right  onto  such  a  stack 
of  ill-smelling  mush,  makes  us  feel  like  saying  a  bad 
word,  but  as  bad  words  are  in  the  mush  category 
with  us,  we  only  say  damn  and  present  a  bold  front  to 
the  inevitable. 

I  did  not  intend  to  mention  this  very  unwelcome 
ration  at  the  start,  but  I  have  heard  it  said  that  when 


FIGHTING   INDIANS         7 

one  has  an  understanding  at  the  beginning  of  an 
engagement,  he  wins  half  the  battle,  so  I  decided  to 
find  out  all  about  this  mush  question  on  the  start, 
and  asked: 

"  Sargeant,  how  often  do  you  have  mush  in  the 
regular  army  ?" 

"  Good  Lord,  man  don't  talk  so  loud  !"  replied  the 
Sargeant.  "  I  have  been  in  the  army  for  nigh  onto 
twenty-one  years,  and  during  that  time  I  have  eaten 
mush  on  an  average  once  a  day !" 

"Gee-Whiz!" 

I  summon  up  all  my  reserve  nerve,  and  ask 
in  a  low  but  very  distinct  voice  : 

"  Do  they  have  mush  on  the  frontier  ?" 

"  No !  I  heard  that  they  once  issued  an  order  to 
that  effect,  but  the  men  threatened  to  mutiny,  and 
since  that  time  they  have  not  dared  to  mention  the 
subject  west  of  the  Missouri  river." 

"  What  regiment  is  there  west  of  the  Missouri 
river,  Sargeant  ?"  I  asked,  a  bright  ray  of  hope  flitting 
across  my  gizzard. 

"  The  Seventh  Cavalry !  The  crack  Cavalry  regi 
ment  of  the  whole  army  !  It  was  Custer's  old  regiment, 
and  they  are  equal  to  ten  thousand  cow-boys  !  They 
are  terrors !" 

"  Sargeant,  if  I  enlist  I  am  going  to  join  the  Seventh 
Cavalry,  I  want  no  mush  on  my  plate ! " 

However,  my  persistence  prevailed,  and  I  manage 
to  make  out  a  meal  on  bread  and  coffee,  thanks  to 
the  Sargeant,  and  soon  after  roll  into  a  blanket  and 
soon  am  dreaming.  No  rest  for  me  that  night. 

The  bugle  sounds  bright  and  early  the  next 
morning,  and  I  hustle  out  to  see  the  men  as  they  fall 
in  for  roll-call. 

After  a  hearty  breakfast  of  beef  stew  and  bread, 
washed  down  with  coffee,  I  hang  around  and  get  a 


8          SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


good  many  ideas  as  to  the  way  business  is  conducted 
in  one  of  Uncle  Samuel's  western  forts  in  time  of 
peace. 

After  guard  mount,  I  accompany  the  Sargeant 
to  the  Adjutant's  office,  and  await  examination.  Soon 
the  orderly  calls  me  into  the  presence  of  that  monarch 
of  all  he  surveys  ! 

I  am  sharphy  questioned,  looked  over  and  jumped 
around;  my  eyes  tested,  and  teeth  examined  in 
much  the  same  manner  that  horse-jockeys  look  over 
a  horse;  height  and  weight  taken,  and  then  pass  over 
to  the  hands  of  the  Surgeon.  He  trots  me  around  for 
a  while  in  the  suit  of  clothes  that  I  was  born  in,  and 
as  he  finds  no  spavins  or  ringbones,  I  pass  examina 
tion  and  am  sworn  in, 

Now  I  am  a   soldier,  and  at  once   draw  a  uniform 
and  a  sutler's  check  ! 

Now  I  am  expected  to,  and  must  do,  recruit  duty, 
and  what  that  duty  consisted  of  is  detaileo  in  the 
following  chapter.  I  assure  you  I  da  not  put  it  at  its 
worst;  I  try  to  dress  it  in  a  smile  and  put  on  its  best 
bib,  for  that  is  bad  enough  to  make  a  man  regret 
the  day  he  held  up  his  right  hand  and  swore  to  wade 
in  gore  for  the  sake  of  his  beloved  country. 

Everything  was  new  to  me,  and  I  kept  both  eyes 
and  ears  open,  resolved  to  learn  all  there  was  to  be 
known,  hoping  thereby  to  save  myself  many  hard 
tasks,  and  harder  reprimands,  and  unbearable  lec 
tures  !  I  always  hated  a  lecture  of  any  kind. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS 


CHAPTER    TWO 

Taming  the  Festive   Recruit — Kitchen  Work   and  Other 

Jobs— Drill,  Drill,  Drill !— Three  Quickly  Learned  Bugle 

Calls — Marching    Orders — Much    Excitement. 

I  soon  found  that  life  at  the  Recruiting  Depot  was 
not  an  eenviable  one  for  newly  enlisted  men,  whether 
a  work-shirker  or  one  ambitious  to  learn  by  routine 
experience  the  ways  and  duties  of  a  soldier.  Invar 
iably,  the  recruit  is  expected  at  all  times  to  do  the 
little  jobs  and  the  dirty  work  ripe  old  soldiers  know 
so  well  how  to  avoid.  The  recruit  is  the  one  that  has 
an  extra  amount  of  dishes  to  wash,  of  wood  to  cut, 
water  to  carry,  potatoes  to  peel,  slops  to  empty, 
floors  to  scrub,  knives  and  forks  to  scour,  and  is  very 
often  jollied  into  heel-balling  belts  and  burnishing 
equipment — in  fact  impelled  to  do  the  very  work  that 
the  non-coms, — non-commisioned  officers, — should  do 
for  themselves. 

If  there  is  any  dirt  to  be  shoveled,  the  recruits  are 
sure  to  be  on  that  particular  detail. 

See  him  now,  when  he  gets  a  breathing  spell.  Say, 
don't  he  look  like  the  ideal  soldier  ;  dressed  in  a  suit 
of  new  clothes — Uncle  Sam's  very  best — each  and 
every  garment  much  too  large  for  him. 

Notice  that  complacent,  peaceful  look  on  his  face 
and  that  serene  smile  !  He  is  happy  now,  and  why 
should  he  not  be  happy  ! 

He  is  not  detailed  on  fatigue  (work),  to-day  ;  he 
gets  three  feeds  a  day,  has  a  pound  of  nigger-heel 
all  to  himself,  and  is  not  expected  to  know  anything  ! 

Oh,  happy  lot — and  lots  more. 

But,  see  !  Why  the  sudden  change  ?  His  face 
turns  pale,  the  smile  has  vanished. 

Is  he  sick  ? 

No! 

The  Orderly  Bugler  has  just  sounded  Fatigue 
Call,  and  although  he  has  been  a  soldier  for  only  two 


10        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 

days,  he  knows  what  it  means ;  and  he  has  also 
learned  two  other  calls  that  he  can  whistle  without  a 
break.  One  is  Recall  From  Fatigue,  and  the  other  is 
Mess  Call! 

He  will  be  among  the  first  to  answer  the  calls  last 
mentioned,  and  if  not  detailed  to  wait  on  table,  he 
will  try  to  be  the  first  to  enter  the  mess  room,  and 
will  make  the  spuds  and  beef  disappear  in  a  manner 
that  is  truly  astonishing. 

It  often  happens  that  a  recruit  is  detailed  in  the 
Adjutant's  Office,  and  it  is  then  that  he  is  respected 
by  all  the  "  old  hosses,"  as  he  now  has — or  thinks  he 
has — a  way  of  knowing  the  plans  and  intentions  of 
all  the  officers  in  the  whole  army. 

It  is  now  his  time  to  get  even.  He  does  so.  When 
he  comes  to  mess  he  will  report  that  so  many 
men  are  to  be  detailed  to-morrow  for  extra  police,  on 
some  new  improvement  that  has  struck  the  fancy  of 
the  Commanding  Officer,  or  that  the  troops  at  the 
Fort  are  soon  to  be  sent  to  relieve  a  company  on  the 
far  frontier ! 

Anything  that  will  cause  the  most  misery  to  the 
old  soldiers  will  be  meat  for  the  Adjutant's  under 
study  for  the  time  being, 

How  they  will  rave  when  they  find  out  that  they 
have  been  fooled  ! 

But  it  is  when  recruits  have  accumulated  to  about 
a  dozen  that  the  life  of  a  soldier  truly  begins.  First 
comes  the  setting-up  drill,  which  is  very  trying  to 
one  not  accustomed  to  it.  It  is  executed  in  the 
following  manner  : 

The  recruits  are  formed  in  a  line,  or  as  near  in  a 
line  as  they  can  be  got,  with  head  up,  eyes  fifteen 
paces  to  the  front;  then  they  are  ordered  to  place  their 
palms  together,  to  step  forward,  bend  over  and 
touch  the  floor  with  the  tips  of  the  fingers,  without 


FIGHTING  INDIANS        11 

bending  the  knees  or  in  any  way  spoiling  the  rigidity 
of  their  positions ! 

Try  it,  if  you  think  it  is  easy  ! 

Other  physical  stunts  follow. 

Then  comes  salute,  fours  right  and  left,  and  so  on 
through  the  whole  school  of  the  soldier. 

It  is  fun  to  see  them,  especially  if  they  have  a 
big  headed  Lance  Sargeant  in  command. 

Finally  marching  orders  come  to  our  relief  and 
there  is  no  more  drill  for  the  present.  Wardrobes 
are  looked  over,  buttons  sewed  on,  and  all  must  be 
got  ready  for  the  trip  to  regimental  headquarters. 

There  is  not  a  bit  of  regret  expressed  by  the  be 
ginners  at  the  order  to  move,  as  they  are  now  sure  of 
being  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  rest  of  their 
regiment,  and  free  from  the  many  petty  persecutions 
of  the  old  coffee-cooling  Infantrymen  at  the  Fort. 

Now  all  citizens  clothing  must  be  disposed  ofr 
and  so  a  pass  is  obtained,  and  away  we  go  heel  and 
toe  to  the  City  of  Leaven  worth  A  visit  is  paid  to 
Our  Uncle,  the  pawn  ,'  broker  and  dealer  in  worn 
clothing,  etc.,  and  a  new  suit  of  clothes  is  soon  ex 
changed  for  a  very  small  sum  of  cash. 

We  take  in  all  there  is  to  be  seen  in  Leavenworth, 
not  forgetting  the  stuff  in  the  bottle  that  cheers  and 
dazzles,  and  then  again  climb  the  hill  that  leads  to  the 
Fort,  fall  in  at  Retreat  and  again  at  Tattoo,  and  at  Taps 
we  go  to  bed  to  dream  of  being  ridden  by  buffaloes, 
hugged  by  snakes,  and  scalped  by  Indians  and  then 
roasted  alive,  and  so  on  until  the  bugle  calls  the  weary 
one  in  the  morning. 

We  assist  in  sorting  and  transferring  an  enormous 
amount  of  company  property,  and  with  an  occasional 
wrestle  with  the  rust  on  the  Parrot  and  Rodman  guns 
on  the  parade,  pass  away  the  time  that  intervenes 
between  the  receipt  of  the  order  to  move,  and  the  time 
that  we  do  move. 


12        SEVENTH  CAV  ALRY 


CHAPTER    THREE 

Gather  at  Railroad  Station  to  Entrain  for  Fort  Snelling— 
Bother  the  Agent — Board  Excursion  Yacht  at  River 
side  While  Awaiting  Train—"  Inspect  "  the  Craft ! 

SEPTEMBER  23d,  1876,  orders  were  received  at  the 
Adjutant's  Office  for  all  Cavalrymen  at  Fort  Leaven- 
worth  to  be  sent,  at  once,  to  join  their  regiments. 

There  were  thirty  of  us,  all  for  the  Seventh  Cav 
alry  and  all  young  and  full  of  what  some  folks  would 
call  deviltry,  and  I  will  now  try  and  give  you  an 
account,  of  what  we  did  on  our  way  out,  and  also 
how  we  cooked  those  ducks,  chewed  hard-tack,  and 
amused  the  people  and  ourselves  on  the  long  journey 
to  the  front. 

We  fell  in  on  the  evening  of  September  23d,  and 
after  listening  to  a  short  but  emphatic  speech  from 
Lieutenant  Russell,  the  officer  who  was  to  act  as  our 
business  manager  on  the  trip,  who  spoke  of  how  well 
he  knew  we  would  behave  ourselves  and  what  would 
be  done  to  those  who  did  not  obey  orders  and  keep 
quiet,  we  were  marched  to  the  depot,  each  man  car 
rying  his  bundle  of  extra  clothing  and  kit. 

I  said  we  were  marched  to  the  railroad  depot, 
but  now  that  I  know  what  the  word  march,  keep  step, 
dress  to  the  right,  and  the  numerous  other  orders, 
not  so  very  mildly  given,  mean,  I  must  own  up  that 
we  walked  or  straggled  ! 

When  we  arrived  at  the  depot  the  Lieutenant  told 
us  to  break-ranks, — don't    know    what  he   meant  by 
that  command,  as   every  man  of  that  whole  thirty 
had  a  rank  of  his  own — in  fact,  we  must  have  appear 
ed  like  a  very  rank  lot  of  soldiers  ! 

We  spread  ourselves  out  over  the  depot  platform; 
haversacks,  canteens,  bundles  and  boots,  thrown  in  a 
promiscuous  heap.  Then  we  amused  ourselves  for 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       13 


the  half -hour  that  we  had  to  wait  for  the  train  to 
arrive  by  asking  the  ticket  agent  and  train  dispatcher 
how  far  it  was  to  Omaha,  and  how  much  it  would 
cost  to  ride  to  the  Black  Hills  on  a  Government  pass ! 
We  bother  him  until  he  hardly  knows  which  way  the 
train  was  going,  and  until,  at  his  request,  the  Lieu 
tenant  ordered  us  to  keep  out  of  that  depot ! 

This  was  a  deadener  on  us,  so,  to  get  square  with 
ticket  agent  and  the  Lieutenant,  and  drive  away 
dull  care,  we  went  down  to  the  river's  edge  where  we 
had  noticed  a  small  pleasure  yacht  tied  up,  while  the 
excursionists  were  up  at  the  Fort  seeing  how  the 
soldiers  lived,  and  putting  on  "  lugs  "  generally. 

There  was  no  one  to  guard  the  yacht,  as  undoubt 
edly  the  parties  had  decided  that  it  would  be  perfect 
ly  safe  to  leave  it  alone,  being  so  near  the  Fort,  and 
here  being  so  many  soldiers  around  to  guard  things; 
but  they  were  mistaken,  in  the  kind  of  soldiers  that 
were  around  there  at  that  time,  or  they  would  have 
left  some  one  on  the  yacht  to  watch  and  pray  ! 

It  was  too  much  for  our  feelings  to  be  so  near 
that  yacht  and  not  board  her,  so,  accordingly  we 
walked  across  the  norrow  stage-plank,  and  at  once 
formed  ourselves  into  a  Board  of  Inspectors  ! 

We  were  very  careful  not  to  disturb  anything. 
But  we  thought  there  ought  to  be  a  little  more  steam, 
and  accordingly  opened  the  draft  and  let  her  zip,  and 
she  did  zip  ! 

Next  we  visited  the  cabin  and  examined  lunch 
baskets  and  the  ice-box  Oh,  that  ice  box  !  We  were 
agreeably  surprised  to  find  bottles  of  different  calibre 
and  color,  which,  on  farther  investigation,  were 
found  to  contain  very  good  articles  of  cold  tea,  por 
ter  and  bottled  stout  ! 

Of  course  the  seats  had  to  be  turned  over,  so  that 
the  dust  and  the  smoke  would  not  blow  on  the  cush 
ions  and  ruin  them.  Pictures  on  the  cabin  walls  had 


14        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

to  be  rearranged  and  classified.    Some  of  the  pictures 
looked  best  when  hung  bottom-up,  or  sideways. 

A  noise  that  sounded  like  a  connon  caused  us  to 
rush  to  the  engine-room,  where  it  was  found  that  the 
steam  was  up  in  the  forties,  and  still  climbing  for  all 
it  was  worth  ! 

It  was  almost  train  time,  and  as  the  "  Inspectors  " 
wanted  to  see  the  machinery  in  operation,  out  came 
the  go-a-head  lever.  But  the  valve  did  not  respond  as 
we  thought  it  would,  and  we  had^to  hustle  to  get  out 
of  the  way  of  a  stream  of  hot  water  ! 

The  next  lever  was  pulled  with  better  results. 

You  should  have  seen  that  engine  start  for  the 
bank,  and  of  course  it  took  the  boat  with  it ! 

The  engine  was  only  about  three-horse  power,  but 
the  were  big  horses,  and  knew  when  to  get  a  gait  on 
them.  It  did  not  make  much  noise,  nor  drive  the  bow 
of  the  boat  into  the  bank  very  far  at  the  first  clip,  but 
it  started  to  dig  a  tunnel,  and  was  just  going  out  of 
sight  towards  the  Fort  when  our  picket  reported 
danger;  and  we  left  the  boat  to  its  work.  It  would 
strike  and  fall  back  for  another  clip,  and  we  were 
having  great  fun  watching  it,  when  our  train  whistled 
and  the  gentle  voice  of  the  Lieutenant  ordered  us  to 
''Kail  in,  and  stop  your  damned  fooling  !" 

The  only  man  that  literally  obeyed  the  order  to 
fall  in  tripped  over  a  pile  of  bundles  and  he  did  fall  in, 
and  he  knocked  two  other  men  in  in  so  going  ! 

The  "  Inspectors  "  were  in  such  a  such  a  hurry  to 
get  to  their  proper  places  in  line,  that  they  forget  to 
stop  the  engine,  but  they  did  securely  tie  down  the 
whistle-cord,  and  we  could  hear  that  little  whistle 
"blowing  fog  signals  long  after  we  were  out  of  sight  of 
the  railroad  depot  ! 

After  we  were  rounded  up  in  our  car,  and  were 
moving  along  on  our  way  towards  St.  Paul,  we  held 
a  conflab  and  after  due  deliberation,  it  was  unani- 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       15 


mously  decided  that  the  yacht  and  engine  were  both 
dandies,  and  that  the  said  excursionists  were  a  most 
accommodating  aggregation.  Furthermore,  that  they 
had  our  most  hearty  thanks  for  the  splendid  feast 
prepared  for  our  benefit,  and  that  we  would  never 
take  particular  pains  to  find  out  how  they  admired 
things  as  they  were  rearranged  for  them  during  their 
absence  to  the  Fort ! 

We  also  decided  that  the  engineer  would  know 
how  to  stop  the  engine,  get  the  boat  out  of  the  bank, 
gravel  out  of  the  pump,  repack  the  valves  and  piston, 
which  we  had  tinkered  with  in  order  to  see  that  they 
were  in  a  proper  and  safe  condition,  and  which  our 
limited  time  did  not  allow  us  to  replace  for  immediate 
operation. 

It  was  also  concluded  that  if  the  engineer  did  not 
stop  the  engine  in  less  then  a  week,  the  boat  would 
dig  a  tunnel  seventeen  hundred  feet  into  the  bank, 
and  be  the  means  of  undermining  the  Fort.  It  was 
further  agreed  that  if  ever  any  of  us  were  so  unfor 
tunate  as  to  meet  the  engineer,  or  any  of  his  crew, 
we  would  ask  if  there  was  any  reward  for  the  arrest 
and  conviction  of  the  persons  who  indulged  their 
inventive  tendencies  in  this  kind  of  experiment,  and 
if  there  was,  they  should  apply  for  the  reward  in  the 
herein  before  mentioned  escapade  and  when  the  said 
reward  was  secured  it  was  to  be  turned  into  the 
general  fund  for  the  benefit  of  the  grasshopper 
sufferers.  We  then  transacted  other  business,  and 
adjourned  to  meet  at  the  call  of  the  Lieutenant. 

After  many  narrow  escapes  from  the  guards  who 
were  stationed  at  the  car  doors  we  arrived  at  Fort 
Snelling,  then  one  of  the  foremost  recruiting  stations 
in  the  department.  An  order  was  issued  for  us  to 
be  held  there  until  the  arrival  of  a  large  party  of 
recruits,  who  were  expected  from  St.  Louis,  then  we 
were  all  to  go  forward  together. 


16        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    FOUR 

At  Fort  Snelling,  Minn. — Recruit  Disciplined — A  Trip   to 

Minne-Ha-Ha  Falls — On  the  Move — Fun  at  Fargo 

Cars  Searched  for  Ducks — Railroad  Accident. 

FORT  SNELLING,  Minn.,  is  situated  on  a  high  bluff 
overlooking  the  Missouri  river,  and  was  at  that  time 
was  garrisoned  by  Company  C,  Twentieth  Infantry, 
and  I  must  say  that  they  were  the  meanest  lot  of 
Regulars  it  was  ever  my  lot  to  come  in  contact  with, 
or  to  be  connected  with  in  any  manner. 

They  kept  us  recruits  busy  from  Guard  Mount 
until  Retreat,  digging  cellars,  drawing  dirt,  grading, 
setting  out  trees,  sawing  wood,  etc. 

A  recruit  "  kicked  "  against  doing  this  kind  of 
work  day  after  day.  He  said  to  the  officer  in  charge 
of  the  work : 

"  I  did  not  enlist  to  farm  and  use  the  pick  and 
shovel.  I  enlisted  to  carry  a  gun  and  march  like  any 
other  soldier." 

He  got  the  gun,  and  with  it  a  knapsack  containing 
about  fifty  pounds  of  brick,  which  he  had  to  carry  on 
parade  for  three  days,  when  he  was  glad  to  take  a 
pick  and  shovel  and  resume  farm  work.  He  never 
after  that  made  a  "  kick  "  although  he  ventured  a 
deal  of  "  cussing  "  on  the  side. 

Company  C,  20th  Infantry,  was  at  that  time  com 
posed  of  dude  soldiers,  pets  of  dress  parade  officers. 
I  never  heard  any  of  them  to  growl  but  once.  That 
was  one  morning  at  Guard  Mount,  when  the  guard 
were  marched  in  review,  and  the  wife  of  the  Com 
manding  Officer,  who  was  on  the  porch  with  their 
baby  as  the  paraders  passed  by,  told  him  to  "  Trot 
them  around  again,  Pa.;  it  pleases  the  baby  !  Hear 
him  laugh!" 

We  lonely  and  homesick  recruits  laughed  in  our 
sleeves  when  we  overheard  expressions  of  indignation 
among  the  "  baby  entertainers  "  over  the  incident. 


FIGHTING     INDIANS         17 


The  old  wooden  block  house,  where  hostile  Reds 
were  once  most  successfully  Penned,  is  now  used  for 
a  wood  house. 

The  old  fort  is  about  four  miles  from  St.  Paul,  and 
although  it  shows  the  wear  and  tear  of  age,  it  remains 
an  impressive  witness  of  the  bravery  of  Minnesota's 
hardy  pioneers. 

Near  the  Fort  is  an  Indian  battle  ground,  where 
many  years  ago  the  brave  Penn  and  his  old-fashioned 
soldiers  fought  and  whipped  three  times  their  num 
ber  of  as  fierce  hostiles  as  ever  trod  a  war  path. 

Favored  with  passes,  one  rainy  day,  our  squad 
visited  the  famous  Minne-ha-ha  Falls,  which  are 
about  two  miles  from  Fort  Snelling.  The  proprietor 
of  the  only  hotel  at  that  place,  much  disgruntled, 
promptly  treated  us  to  an  invitation  to  "  Please  to  go 
back  to  the  Fort,  and  not  do  drilling  on  my  lawns." 

Such  is  the  gratitude  shown  the  poor,  misguided 
men,  who  offer  their  services  and  their  appetites  to 
the  government,  for  the  protection  of  the  cow-boys 
and  sutlers  on  the  frontier  ! 

However,  we  agreed  to  cut  our  visit  short  if  the 
said  proprietor  would  come  across  with  a  bite  and  a 
drink,  threatening  to  put  his  establishment  out  of 
commission  in  case  our  reasonable  and  friendly  re 
quest  was  not  complied  with. 

We  got  the  bite ! 

Never  before  did  I  realize  how  much  cayenne 
pepper  could  be  incorporated  in  a  sandwich.  Oh,  they 
were  hot — but  they  were  worth  all  they  cost.  For 
the  drink,  we  were  given  a  dipper  and  told  to  all  help 
ourselves  to  the  water. 

After  climbing  over  the  fence  and  interviewing 
the  landlord's  fine  turnip  patch,  we  concluded  to  call 
the  accounts  square,  and  with  many  thanks,  and 
to  the  relief  of  the  proprietor,  we  fell  in  for  the  Fort, 


18        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

and  were  soon  at  that  "  Government  Workhouse,"  as 
we  then  called  it. 

Somehow  or  other  particulars  of  our  little  time  at 
the  Falls  reached  our  Commanding  Officer,  and 
thereafter  not  one  of  our  bunch  received  a  pass. 

We  laid  at  the  Fort  about  ten  days,  and  no  more 
recruits  coming,  we  were  order  forward.  We  were 
glad  to  get  away  from  that  place,  and  did  not  address 
very  kindly  language  to  members  of  the  Infant-ry 
who  were  at  the  railroad  station  to  see  us  off. 

We  were  kindly  treated  by  the  people  along  the 
line  of  the  railroad.  At  some  of  the  stations  baskets 
of  apples  and  lunches  were  handed  in  through  the 
windows  of  the  cars — for  the  soldiers. 

How  well  I  remember  one  aged  lady,  who  handed  a 
pie  and  some  cakes  through  a  window  of  our  car,  and 
on  our  thanking  her  for  her  kindness,  said :  "  My 
only  son  was  killed  in  the  Custer  massacre."  She 
wanted  do  all  she  could  to  brighten  our  way,  for  she 
knew  we  would  have  poor  food  and  many  hardships 
after  we  reached  the  hostile-infested  Northwest. 

As  the  train  started  on,  we  gave  that  woman  as 
hearty  cheers  as  ever  split  the  air.  When  she  bade  us 
good-bye,  she  hoped  the  Indian  war  would  be  over 
before  we  reached  the  front. 

It  does  not  cost  much  to  do  these  little  kindly  acts 
and  this  one  was  wonderfully  helpful. 

Cheers  greeted  us  on  arrival  at  the  different  places 
along  the  railroad,  and  we  all  seemed  to  grow  bigger, 
and  some  wished  we  had  at  hand  a  few  hostiles  to 
practice  on. 

Opportunities  for  fun  were  many,  and  eagerly 
cultivated. 

Many  a  time  the  train's  bell-rope  was  given  a 
yank,  and  the  engineer  would  stop  the  train  and 
come  back  and  help  the  conductor  locate  the  cause  of 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         19 

the    emergency    signal.      And  didn't  the  train  crew 
pour  forth  sulphureous  vapors  in  volcanic  quantities  ! 

We  ate  raw  salt  bacon,  drank  cold  coffee,  and 
gnawed  hard-tack,  and  were  as  jolly  a  lot  of  fellows 
as  ever  filled  a  car. 

Did  you  ever  attempt  to  eat  a  hard-tack !  If  not, 
try  to  bite  a  piece  out  of  an  old  fire-brick.  I  do  not 
wonder  the  Government  examines  a  man's  teeth  so 
carefully  before  he  is  enlisted  ;  it  should  provide  steel 
teeth  and  a  file  with  which  to  sharpen  them. 

After  a  two  days'  ride  we  arrive  at  Fargo,  a  small 
Frontier  town  on  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad.  Here 
we  were  to  lay  over  for  the  night.  Our  car  was 
placed  on  a  side  track  near  the  depot. 

Oh,  what  a  feast  we  had  that  night !  The  Lieuten 
ant  had  telegraphed  ahead  to  the  proprietor  of  a 
restaurant,  and  on  our  arrival  we  were  treated  to  hot 
coffee,  soft  bread  <:nd  baked  potatoes.  Yes,  and  there 
was  one  thing  more,  and  it  was  over  a  year  before  I 
tasted  it  again.  It  was  butter — cow's  butter,  the  real 
article,  good  and  fresh,  not  a  rancid  double-acting 
foundry  product. 

Didn't  we  love  that  Lieutenant — but  we  did  not 
tell  him  so,  as  we  were  afraid  that  one  of  the  waiter 
girls  who  had  him  in  tow,  might  not  like  it.  We  all 
resolved  to  make  him  remember  that  splendid  supper 
served  aboard  the  car.  I  guess  we  succeeded.  But 
girls  will  be  girls,  and  shoulder  straps  are  catching. 

After  supper  two  men  were  detailed  to  guard  the 
car  doors,  and  ordered  not  to  permit  a  man  to  pass. 

But,  notwithstanding  this  precaution,  every  mem 
ber  of  our  party,  except  the  guards,  did  go  out  and 
view  the  town  that  night.  But  not  one  of  the  bunch 
passed  through  a  door-way  of  the  car. 

This  town  had  had  a  lively  experience  with  a  large 
party  of  recruits,  a  few  weeks  before,  when  merchants 


20        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

lost  large  quantities  of  tobacco,  fruits  and  vegetables. 
So  on  this  occasion  all  stores  were  closed  for  the 
night  at  an  early  hour. 

We  passed  a  very  comfortable  night. 

A  Pullman  hunting  car  was  standing  near  the 
depot,  its  sides  pretty  well  covered  with  the  game 
secured  that  day  by  a  party  of  hunters  who  had  hired 
the  car.  During  the  night  one  of  our  boys  brought 
to  our  car  an  armful  of  wild  ducks,  and  reported 
hunting  extra  good  in  that  locality. 

The  ducks  were  very  carefully  stowed  away  in  the 
coal  box  of  our  car  and  artistically  covered  over  with 
soft  coal.  Now  we  would  have  a  feast,  if  we  could  only 
pass  muster  in  the  morning,  and  I  do  not  think  that 
there  was  ever  a  party  of  soldiers  more  anxious  to 
leave  town  then  we  were. 

Our  train  was  to  leave  Fargo  at  7:30  in  the  morn 
ing.  At  about  7:00  we  saw  the  Lieutenant  and  a 
couple  of  men  coming  our  way.  When  they  got  to  the 
car  the  Lieutenant  surprised  us  all  by  saying  to  the 
guard  at  the  door: 

"Did  any  man  passed  you  in  the  night. !" 

"  No,  Sir,"  was  the  truthful  reply. 

The  Lieutenant  then  if  urther  astonished  us  by  say 
ing  that  there  had  been  two  dozen  ducks  stolen  from 
the  side  of  the  hunting  car  during  the  night,  and  he 
then  ordered  all  the  men  to  open  their  bundles,  so 
that  the  men  with  him  could  make  a  search  for  the 
missing  game. 

The  bundles  were  opened,  their  contents  pulled 
over,  and  not  the  least  sign  of  a  duck  was  to  be 
found  !  Then  the  callers  looked  under  every  seat 
in  the  racks  at  the  sides  of  the  car,  and  in  fact  they 
looked  in  every  place  big  enough  to  hold  a  duck, 
except  the  coal  box. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         21 


After  searching  for  nearly  twenty  long  minutes 
they  gave  it  up,  and  saying  that  they  were  sorry  to 
have  put  us  to  so  much  bother,  and  expressing  regret 
that  they  had  even  suspected  us.  Then  one  of  them 
went  to  the  hunting  car  and  returned  with  a  box  of 
cigars,  which  he  passed  around,  and  left  the  car,  to 
the  great  relief  of  yours  truly  ! 

Another  day  was  spent  on  the  road  between  Fargo 
and  Bismarck,  the  train  at  times  running  so  slow  that 
the  men  could  often  jump  off  and  run  ahead  and  ask 
the  engineer  for  a  chew,  or  run  ahead  and  try  to  flag 
the  train  !  The  reason  the  train  went  so  slow  was 
explained  to  me  by  the  conductor,  as  being  due  to 
alkali  water  foaming  in  the  boiler  of  the  locomotive, 


22         SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    FIVE. 

We  Arrive  at  Bismarck — In  Camp  Hancock — Cook  Those 

Missing  Ducks — March  Six  Miles  Across  the  Prairie 

to  Fort  A.  Lincoln — Crow   Indians  Friendly. 

WE  ARRIVE  at  Bismarck,  Dakota  Territory,  about 
8  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  are  at  once  marched  to 
Camp  Hancock,  on  the  Main  street,  where  we  hang 
up  for  the  night.  We  were  dirty,  tired  and  hungry, 
and  were  very  glad  that  our  journey  was  so  near 
its  end. 

Bismarck  was  a  thriving  town  of  about  five 
thousand  inhabitants,  notorious  for  its  many  dance- 
halls,  gambling  dens  and  crime  holes  of  all  kinds. 

There  was  a  large  floating  population  of  the 
the  worst  characters  from  the  East  and  reckless 
frontier  toughs.  Brawls  and  murders  were  frequent, 
mostly  due  to  the  consumption  of  a  vicious  whiskey 
manufactured  not  for  from  town.  The  buildings 
used  for  trade  and  commerce  were  of  wood,  cheaply 
knocked  together,  in  a  spread  out  way,  high  in  front 
with  a  low  shanty  in  the  rear.  The  dwellings  were 
mostly  shacks. 

Camp  Hancock  consisted  of  a  row  of  old  log  huts 
or  sheds  which  were  built  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  soldiers  who  guarded  the  workmen  when  the 
railroad  was  being  built.  The  quarters  were  roomy 
and  airy,  and  I  guess  the  part  we  occupied  had  been 
used  as  a  cattle-shed,  as  the  indications  pointed  that 
way,  Nevertheless  we  got  along  as  well  as  soldiers 
on  the  march  generally  do,  for  if  there  is  a  good 
place  available  it  is  occupied  by  the  officers. 

After  getting  ourselves  sorted  out  a  little  we 
built  a  fire  in  an  old  stove  standing  in  one  end 
of  the  room,  and  all  hands  \  set  to  work  to  undress 
the  ducks  we  had  secured  from  the  hunting  party, 
and  as  we  had  no  hot  water,  and  the  ducks  were  cold 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        23 

and  stiff,  you  can  imagine  what  time  a  we  had, 
and  how  the  game  looked  when  we  got  through.  You 
could  not  tell  what  they  were  originally. 

After  a  good  deal  of  skirmishing  one  of  the  men 
found  on  old  tin  boiler.  It  only  leaked  in  five  places. 
It  took  us  twenty  minutes  to  stuff  the  holes  up  with 
old  pieces  of  shirt,  and  it  would  sizzle.  We  then  filled 
it  with  water  and  tore  the  ducks  up  as  best  we  could 
and  threw  them  in,  and  while  one  man  did  duty  at 
the  fire,|the  rest  went  out  to  forage  for  onions,  salt, 
pepper,  or  anything  that  lay  loose.  Chagrined  because 
we  were  suspected  of  stealing  the  ducks,  we  had 
resolved  to  have  them  cooked  in  a  proper  manner, 
even  if  we  hid  have  to  break  our  good  r  esolutions  to 
doit. 

It  was  not  far  from  12  o 'clock,  midnight,  when  the 
ducks  were  pronounced  ready  and  we  all  gathered 
around  the  boiler  and  then  began  our  attack  on  the 
duckery.  We  had  no  knives  and  forks,  nor  plates, 
nothing  but  our  dirtyhands  and  fingers,  but  that  did 
.not  worry  us  much,  as  we  had  the  best  of  appetites, 
Two  men  would  take  a  duck;  and  then  there 
would  be  a  trial  of  strength  with  one  duck  in  the 
middle  and  a  man  each  side,  and  the  tough  birds 
were  dismantled.  What  fun,  and  also  what  a  least. 
It  must  be  acknowledged  that  they  were,  to  quote 
Puck,  "  Right  smart,  tol'ble  good,"  as  stated  at  the 
time, 

Puck,  as  we  had  named  him,  was  a  young  man 
from  Hoosierville,  Hooppole  County,  Ill-noise,  (as  he 
pronounced  it),  and  he  was  a  thoroughbred,  too.  He 
got  on  our  car  at  Morehead,  and  asked  us  if  we  could 
carry  him  through,  as  he  was  out  skads.  We  soon 
had  him  dressed  up  in  a  suit  of  blue,  and  that  uniform 
passed  him  through  to  Bismarck,  and  as  he  expressed 
it,  "It  was  party  tol'ble  done  !" 

It  is  not  very  often  that  one  can  beat  his  way  on 


24         SEVENTH  CAVALRY 

the  Western  roads,  and  it  is  a  good  recommend  in 
this  part  of  the  county  for  a  young  man  to  say,  in 
reply  to  the  question: 

"  How  did  you  get  here  ?" 

"  I  came  through  on  my  wit  and  muscle  I" 

After  a  hastey  and  scant  breakfast  in  the  morning 
we  shoulder  our  packs,  and  start  for  Fort  A.  Lincoln, 
whose  garrison  flag  could  be  seen  on  the  hill,  six 
miles  distant.  The  Lieutenant  had  an  ambulance  to 
ride  in,  and  he  was  not  decent  enough  to  tell  us  to 
put  our  bundles  in  it,  as  there  was  plenty  of  room  to 
do.  Our  luggage  was  quite  heavy.  Oh,  what  a  hard 
march  that  was  for  so  short  a  distance. 

Only  six  miles  across  the  prairie,  but  our  bundles 
made  it  seem  twenty,  and  a  small  bundle  will  get 
very  heavy  in  a  little  while  on  such  a  tramp.  Each 
of  us  was  carrying  all  his  worldy  goods  and  chattels. 

I  suppose  it  was  done  to  help  toughen  our  muscles, 
as  the  officers  are  great  for  that,  though  they  like  to 
have  it  done  by  others.  I  thought  we  would  never  get 
to  the  Fort. 

After  over  an  hour's  march  we  arrived  at  the 
river,  and  there  had  to  wait  about  an  hour  for  the 
steam  ferry  boat  to  get  up  steam  and  come  across 
for  us. 

We  passed  away  the  time  while  we  were  waiting 
for  the  boat,  sitting  on  the  muddy  bank,  and  1  ook- 
ing  over  to  the  Promised  Land,  where  the  camp  could 
be  plainly  seen  from  where  we  were.  It  looked  like  a 
large  village  of  low  white  huts,  and  the  horses  resem 
bled  a  herd  of  cattle  as  they  were  grazing  on  the 
prairie  below  the  camp.  I  had  never  before  seen  so 
many  horses  together— there  were  twelve  hundred 
of  them — and  it  was  a  scene  well  worthy  of  a  place 
on  canvass.  Finally  the  boat  came  across  for  us,  and 
we  are  soon  on  board,  bag  and  bagage. 


FIGHTING   INDIANS       25 

Over  we  go,  and  as  scon  as  the  boat  touches  the 
far  shore  we  jump  off  and  scramble  up  the  bank  as 
best  we  can.  We  pass  though  quite  a  crowd  of 
Indians — Crows — who  utter  their  gutteral  "  how-how  " 
as  we  pass  them.  On  we  go,  passing  a  saw  mill  and 
sutler's  store,  and  then  turn  to  the  left  and  pass  along 
by  the  guard-house  where  General  Custer  once  held 
Rain-in-the-Face,  a  notorious  Indian  guilty  of  killing 
two  white  men.  Rain-in-the-Face  was  captured  by 
Col.  Tom  Custer.  The  Indian  escaped,  took  part  in 
the  Little  Big  Horn  massacre,  two  years  later,  and 
there  in  revenge  cut  the  heart  from  Colonel  Tom 
Custer,  brother  of  the  General. 

We  cross  the  parade  and  halt  before  the  Adjutant's 
office,  where  the  Lieutenant  makes  his  report. 

Our  arrival  at  the  Fort  is  announced  by  the  fireing 
of  one  gun,  and  I  think  that  if  the  President  of  the 
United  Stated  is  entitled  to  fifty,  that  there  should 
have  been  two  hundred  fired  for  us. 

All  the  members  of  the  7th  Cavalry  not  on  duty 
gathered  as  near  us  ?s  they  dared  to,  and  they  seem 
ed  to  act  as  though  they  feared  the  stars  and  bars, 
but  would  like  to  get  a  whack  at  the  man  who  wore 
them !  They  laughed  heartily  at  our  very  best 
attempts  to  stand  at  "attention,"  which  command  is 
generally  given  T-E-N-tion,  with  all  the  accent  on  the 
ten. 

There  we  had  to  stand  for  nearly  an  hour,  while 
the  Captains  were  selecting,  or  drawing  cuts,  to  see 
who  should  have  such  and  such  a  man  for  his  collec 
tion  ef  dogs,  as  that  is  about  all  they  seem  to  think 
that  a  private  soldier  amounts  to. 

Finally,  at  about  twelve  o'clock,  noon,  we  are  all 
selected  and  assigned  to  the  different  companies;  and 
I,  for  the  first  time,  become  a  high-private  in  Com 
pany  "  M,"  Vth  U.  S.  Regular  Cavalry,  and  start 
with  my  First  Sergeant,  John  Ryan,  to  join  my 
company  at  their  camp  on  the  prairie,  about  one- 
fourth  of  a  mile  below  the  Cavalry's  winter  quarters. 


26        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    SIX. 

Seventh  Cavalry  Camp — The   Soldiers  Are  a  Rough-and- 

Lot — Our  First  Meal  in  Camp — Pup-Tents — My 

First  Cavalry   Drill  Was  Some  Thriller. 

I  WAS  amazed  and  depressed,  with  the  appearance 
of  the  camp.  My  patriotism  went  below  zero  as  I  saw 
how  unkempt  the  soldiers  were — unshaved,  uniforms 
flayed  and  dirty ;  many  with  their  hair  nearly  down 
to  their  collars;  gaunt  and  hungry-looking,  yet, 
withal,  as  good  and  jolly  a  lot  of  men  as  I  ever  met. 
A  hearty  welcome,  was  given  us  recruits ;  soon  we 
were  real  comrades.  What  a  difference  between  the 
real  soldiers  we  now  met,  and  those  paper  collar 
dudes  at  Fort  Snelling ! 

Sure  these  Seventh  Cavalry  vets  laugh  at  our 
blunders,  and  have  fun  at  our  expense,  but  if  you  are 
in  need  of  anything  they  have  you  can  have  it  for  the 
asking ;  and  if  you  want  a  friend  who  will  stand  by 
you  through  thick  and  thin,  they  are  the  boys  to 
tie  to. 

I  joined  the  Company  at  dinner,  when  I  for  the 
first  time  take  my  tin  cup  and  tin  plate  and  follow  the 
crowd  to  the  Cook's  tent.  There  each  applicant  is 
supplied  a  plateful  of  baked  beans,  a  cup  of  bean 
soup,  and  about  one  fourth  of  a  loaf  of  good  soft  white 
bread.  Then  back  to  our  tent  we  go,  and  eat  our 
dinner,  and  it  did  taste  good.  Our  morning's  march 
had  given  us  an  appetite  worth  while,  and  we  clean 
the  eatables  all  up. 

One  of  the  men  said  to  me, — 

"  Let  me  take  your  plate,  and  I  will  get  you  some 
more !" 

I  decline  his  friendly  offer  with  thanks,  and  sug 
gest  that  if  my  appetite  lasts  I  will  make  a  big  hole 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       27 

in  the  appropriation  for  food.  He  comes  back  with, 
"  It  is  a  good  plan  to  feed  up  to  the  limit  when  you 
get  a  chance,  for  you  will  need  a  hump  like  a  camel, 
to  draw  on,  when  you  get  in  the  field." 

I  was  assigned  to  one  of  the  pup-tents,  with  two 
other  men.  We  were  soon  settled  and  ready  for 
callers,  and  the  soldiers  were  not  slow  in  coming  to 
see  the  recruits.  The  vets  all  wanted  to  know  what 
was  going  on  in  the  outside  world. 

We  tell  our  callers  all  the  news  we  know  of,  and 
a  few  of  the  latest  stories,  and  they  meet  us  on 
aqual  terms,  and  are  all  are  happy. 

The  pup-tents  are  made  of  four  pieces  of  canvas, 
the  sections  buttoned  together,  with  a  short  stake  at 
each  end  and  a  ridge-piece.  The  tent,  in  position,  is 
only  about  three  feet  high  and  four  feet  long.  You 
enter  at  one  end — that  is  you  crawl  in — and  you  have 
to  stay  crawled  until  you  come  out.  Pup-tents  are 
good  to  keep  the  sun  off  but  not  much  protection 
when  it  rains. 

While  in  this  camp  I  had  my  first  experience  in 
mounted  cavalry  drill,  and  as  I  have  undertaken  to 
give  you  a  personally  conducted  trip,  I  will  give  you 
everything  just  as  I  found  it. 

Back  in  the  days  when  I  was  a  farmer  boy,  in  the 
township  of  Lindley,  N.  Y.,  I  excelled  as  a  rider  of 
horses — and  took  especial  delight  in  riding  bareback. 

But  somehow  this  was  different ! 

Indeed  it  was  fun,  fun  of  the  funniest  kind — for 
the  spectators. 

First,  you  are  given  a  horse  to  ride  bare-back,  and 
you  have  to  jump  your  mount  oyer  ditches  and  rail 
fences.  This  is  to  give  you  confidence  in  your  ability 
to  ride.  You  do  not  mind  it  much  after  the  first 
round. 


28          SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

Next,  you  are  given  a  horse  with  an  army  saddle 
on,  and  you  smile  to  yourself  and  say  in  your  mind, 
that  now  you  will  show  that  you  can  ride.  You  soon 
find  that  you  are  in  for  a  circus,  and  destined  to  be 
the  cause  of  unlimited  fun  for  the  onlookers. 

As  you  are  about  to  mount,  the  stirrup  straps  are 
crossed  in  the  saddle,  and  when  you  innocently 
attempt  to  straighten  them  back  in  their  proper 
places,— 

"  Let  those  stirrups  alone,  and  mount !"  comes  the 
order. 

Scared  out  what  little  sense  I  had  when  I  entered 
the  camp,  (for  it  was  "  Your's  Most  Respectfully  "),  I 
climb  onto  the  saddle. 

The  horse,  an  old  one  and  onto  his  job,  puts  on  a 
horse  grin  and  gets  down  to  business. 

As  soon  as  I  get  aboard,  I  am  ordered  to,— 

"  Put  your  feet  in  the  stirrups !" 

To  do  so,  I  must  draw  my  knees  up  to  my  chin. 

Feeling  like  a  misquito  that  has  been  detected 
trying  to  suck  blood  out  of  a  wax  figure,  I  await  what 
is  to  come  next.  It  comes  all  of  a  sudden.  The  horse 
starts  ahead  in  great  shape  and  I  try  to  keep  in  con 
tact  with  him.  The  best  I  can  do,  is  to  meet  the 
saddle  half  way  every  time  it  comes  up  ! 

Oh,  what  a  ride !  What  delicious  fun ! 
I  take  a  tumble,  regain  my  feet,  and,  having  the 
bridle  rein  in  hand,  manage  to  regain  the  saddle,  and 
the  performance  continues  for  near  an  hour.  I  was  all 
in,  however,  when  ordered  to  dismount  and  "  tie  the 
horse  to  the  line,"  which  I  do  most  gladly  and  with  all 
possible  expedition.  This  done,  as  I  turned  away 
from  the  head  of  the  horse,  back  went  its  ears, 
and  with  a  quick  swing  it  lunged  forward  and  took  a 
not  very  gentle  nip  where  saddle- blisters  were  already 
in  evidence,  and  held  on.  With  a  jerk  that  almost 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          29 

tears  away  the  seat  of  my  trousers,  I  break  away  ;  my 
initiation  drill  is  over,  and  I  meander  down  the  Com 
pany  street,  tired,  discouraged,  mad,  homesick. 

Oh,  that  nip  !  Why  did  not  that  horse  select  some 
other  portion  of  my  anatomy  ?  I  had  rather  give  an 
ear,  that  to  lose  a  much  longed-for  pleasure  of 
sitting  down  and  giving  the  place  the  hard  saddle 
had  pounded  a  square  deal. 

The  next  day  all  recruits  were  drilled  with  their 
Company,  each  recruit  fully  armed  and  equipped,  and 
when  we  mounted  each  one  painfully  reminded  of 
yesterday's  exhibition  performance. 

When  the  Sergeant  dismisses  us  from  drill,  we 
greenies  take  a  bee-line  for  the  sutler,  who  has  the 
exclusive  privilege  of  suppling  strong  drink  to 
soldiers,  and  we  each  took  several  doses  of  medicine. 
His  treatment  was  so  effectual,  that  we  return  to  the 
pup  tents  much  relieved. 


30  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    SEVEN. 

Repair  Telegraph  Line  Between  Bismarck  and  Fort  A. 

Lincoln — Sioux   Indians  Ugly — Ordered  to  Standing 

Rock — Rerservation    Indians  Hold  War  Dance. 

OUR  COMMAND  laid  in  camp  at  Fort  A.  Lincoln  for 
;about  three  weeks,  the  men  doing  guard,  picket  and 
police  duty  by  turns.  I  was  detailed  to  take  three 
men  and  repair  the  Government  telegraph  line,  which 
extended  from  the  telegraph  office  in  the  railroad 
station  at  Bismarck  to  the  Adjutant's  office  at  the 
Cavalry  carnp. 

There  were  numerous  wood  choppers  in  the  bot 
tom  lands  on  the  Bismarck  side  of  the  river,  and  they 
were  not  careful  whether  they  fell  a  tree  across  the 
wire  or  not.  There  were  no  insulators  at  the  office, 
so  I  got  a  lot  of  ale  and  wine  bottles  and  used  the 
necks  of  them  for  insulators,  and  they  were  an  orna 
ment  to  the  scraggy  cot  ton  wood  poles  we  had  to  use. 
I  also  had  a  fine  time  stretching  a  new  wire  across 
the  Missouri  river  near  the  camp,  as  the  steamboat 
had  broken  the  old  one  down  with  its  smoke-stack. 
After  nearly  a  week  of  hard  work  we  got  the  line  so 
we  could  work  it  all  right,  and  then  I  "  spelled  "  the 
regular  operator  at  the  camp. 

This  kind  of  work  was  finally  stopped  by  an  order 
that  came,  to  the  effect  that  the  7th  Cavalry  must 
take  to  the  field  again,  and  go  to  Standing  Rock 
Indian  Agency,  and  there  disarm  the  Indians  and 
take  their  ponies  excepting  one  to  each  tepee. 

Now  we  looked  for  trouble  to  begin,  as  there 
was  a  large  body  of  the  ugly  Sioux  at  that  point  and 
they  were  getting  the  Agency  Indians  rather  uneasy, 
and  all  were  reported  as  getting  ready  to  go  to  join 
Sitting  Bull. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         31 


We  were  soon  on  the  go,  and  were  glad  to  get 
away  from  camp  duty,  and  all  looked  ahead  to  the 
eighty  miles  that  were  between  us  and  the  reds  as 
about  the  proper  distance  for  an  outing,  and  not 
too  far  from  winter  quarters. 

As  we  were  moving  along  on  our  third  day  out, 
the  regiment  was  suddenly  halted,  and  the  order 
passed  along  the  whole  line  for  the  men  to  "  Dismount 
and  tighten  saddle-girths !" 

The  old  soldiers  said  that  now  we  were  in  for  a 
run,  as  there  had  been  a  scout  seen  to  hurry  up 
to  the  Commanding  Officer,  and  deliver  some  kind  of 
a  message,  whereupon  the  command  was  at  once 
halted.  We  have  ten  of  the  Crow  Indian  scouts  with 
us,  and  as  they  are  deadly  enemies  of  the  Sioux  they 
did  good  work.  They  go  ahead  and  keep  a  sharp 
look-out  for  hostiles  and  ambushes.  They  are  enlisted  f: 
and  draw  the  same  pay  and  rations  that  a  private 
soldier  does,  and  for  the  work  they  do  deserve  more 
praise  and  pay  than  they  ever  get.  They  will  do 
more  head  scouting  than  a  white  scout,  and  are  more 
valuable  as  dispatch  carriers,  as  they  arealway  ready, 
day  or  night,  to  carry  dispatches  to  any  part  of  the 
country,  and  will  be  a  good  many  miles  on  their 
journey  before  a  white  scout  thinks  of  getting  started. 

Saddle-girths  were  tightened,  arms  looked  to  and 
loaded,  blankets  and  kits  on  the  saddles  tightened  up, 
and  all  made  ready  for  a  good  shaking  up,  as  there 
will  be  no  stopping  to  pick  up  anything  that  is 
dropped. 

In  less  timethan  it  takes  to  write  this  we  are  in 
the  saddles  again,  and  forward  we  move. 

"  Forward  at  a  trot  !"  sounds  the  headquarters 
trumpet,  and  we  prick  our  horses  with  the  spurs, 
and  trot  it  is. 


32        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

We  rise  to  the  top  of  the  bluff  behind  which  we 
had  halted,  and  then  we  can  see  the  Indians.  There 
are  over  a  thousand  of  them  ! 

They  were  less  then  two  mile  away,  and  were 
riding  their  ponies  in  a  circle  on  the  open  prairie.  It 
is  a  beautiful  sight,  especially  to  us  poor  devils  who 
had  never  seen  any  Indians  but  those  that  stand  in 
front  of  the  cigar  stores  and  held  the  wooden  toma 
hawk  and  cigars.  It  is  a  lively  scene  and  worth 
going  miles  to  see. 

"Ta-ta-ta-ta-te-ta-te-ta-te-ta-ta-a-a!"  goes  the  trumpet, 
and  away  goes  the  whole  command  at  a  charge, 
direct  for  the  Indians.  Our  sabres  are  drawn  and 
slung  to  our  wrists  by  the  slip-knots,  we  hold  our 
revolvers  in  hand  ready  for  instant  use,  as  we  put 
the  spurs  to  our  horses  and  urge  them  ahead  with 
a  yell  that  echoes  from  bluff  to  bluff  and  through  the 
ravines  all  around  us. 

Will  they  stand  !  They  outnumber  us,  and  we 
think  that  they  mean  to  give  us  battle  !  On  we  go, 
horses  doing  their  best,  and  still  we  urge  them  for 
more  speed ! 

As  we  get  within  a  mile  of  them  the  Indians  sud 
denly  turn  their  ponies  and  scamper  back  toward 
the  Agency  ! 

They  are  afraid  to  tackle  us  on  the  open  prairie. 
That  would  give  us  too  good  a  chance  !  Neither  do 
they  like  the  looks  of  those  wagons  that  suddenly 
stop  and  turn  around  !  Those  wagons  would  have 
soon  unloaded  a  part  of  their  load  in  their  ranks,  and 
a  cannon  is  just  what  they  will  not  face  ! 

The  "  wagons,  "  as  they  are  called  by  the  Indians, 
were  two  Rodman  and  Gatling  guns ! 

After  a  very  lively  chase  of  eight  miles  we  arrived 
at  the  Agency,  and  the  Indians  gether  on  the  prairie 
just  below  us  in  their  village.  A  few  rounds  are  fired 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       33 

from  one  of  the  "wagons"  to  show  the  reds  what  they 
can  do,  and  as  the  balls  whistle  over  their  heads  and 
make  the  dirt  fly  a  half-mile  ahead  of  them  and 
their  camp,  they  are  completely  cowed. 

Had  they  charged  us  in  a  body  there  is  no  doubt 
but  what  they  would  have  won  the  battle,  as  they 
were  five  to  our  one,  and  were  all  armed  with  rifles 
and  revolvers,  most  of  them  having  new  repeating 
rifles,  and  they  could  handle  them  mounted  better 
than  our  troops,  as  they  were  used  to  fighting  in 
that  manner 

An  interpreter  was  sent  to  parley  with  them,  and 
to  give  them  plainly  to  understand  that  the  United 
States  troops  had  been  sent  from  Fort  Rice  and  Fort 
A.  Lincoln,  to  get  their  guns  and  ponies.  That  they 
must  yield,  and  then  they  would  be  cared  for.  That 
the  Government  wanted  peace,  not  war. 

After  waiting  for  a  long  time,  during  which  the 
the  reds  held  a  pow-wow  among  themselves  and  were 
much  divided,  finally  a  few  squaws  appeared  bringing 
some  old  rifles  and  carbines.  Although  we  knew 
the  braves  were  well  equipped  with  arms  and  am- 
amunition,  we  could  could  not  find  where  they  had 
hidden  them. 

We  camped  that  night  about  half  a  mile  from  the 
Indian  village — part  way  between  their  village  and 
the  agency.  There  I  first  heard  their  barbaric  songs 
and  music  in  a  most  disgusting  setting.  The  reds 
kept  us  awake  nearly  all  night,  with  their  unearthly 
howlmgs  and  cha-ce-ga  pounding — a  drum  similar  to 
the  rim  of  a  'cheese  box,  with  a  tightly  stretched 
tanned  head,  and  as  unmusical  as  such  a  contrive 
must  of  necessity  be. 

Here  for  tr\e  first  time  I  saw  a  war  dance,  as  they 
are  given  in  native  war-councils — and  the  reds  were 


34        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


not  at  all  abashed  by  the  presence  of  group  of  Uncle 
Sam's  soldiers  as  on-lookers. 

The  braves  were  painted  in  the  highest  style  of 
Indian  art.  They  numbered  over  two  hundred.  Some 
wore  bloomer-like  costumes,  made  of  light  blue  and 
bright  red  calico.  The  Indian  like  the  Negro,  wants 
bright  colors,  and  they  will  have  them  too.  Others 
wore  old  army  shirts  and  moccasins,  the  latter  being 
worn  by"all.  The  greater  number  were  dressed  in 
primitive  costumes — a  breech-clout,  moccasins  and 
beaver  anklets,  a  necklace  of  bear  claws,  and  a 
girdle.  All  were  decorated  with  wing  and  tail  feath 
ers  plucked  from  large  birds  of  flight,  and  tin  whistles 

were  numerous.    Many  were  nearly  naked. 

One  brave,  who  was  practically  naked,  had  cover- 
his  person  with  an  assortment  of  bright  colored 
pigments,  and  then,  with  his  finger-nails  had  scratched 
the  colors  off  in  odd  streaks.  Around  his  body  was  a 
belt  from  which  hung  rabbit-tails,  and  from  his  rear 
there  hung  a  large  bustle  of  eagle  feathers. 

The  "  orchestra  "  was  composed  of  chosen  braves, 
who  sat  on  the  ground,  sang  war  songs,  songs  of  the 
chase,  and  chanted  boastingly,  all  the  while  pounding 
in  unison  on  their  che-se-gas. 

Not  a  squaw  took  part  in  the  dance.  The  squaws 
sat,  or  crouched,  on  the  ground,  around  the  dancers, 
and  occasionally,  (while  the  orchestra-chorus  gave 
way),  grunted  out  their  approval  as  some  warior  told 
of  his  victories  when  on  the  war  path,  and  how  he 
had  inflicted  torture. 

As  a  "  curtain  raiser,"  the  braves  marched  into  the 
ring  and  blowing  whistles  continuously  while  they 
jumped  and  shied  about,  twisting  their  bodies  into 
every  conceivable  position,  keeping  time  to  the  beat 
ing  of  the  che-ce-gas.  They  lifted  a  foot  and  put 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          35 


down  with  a  thud,  then  repeat  the  step  with  the 
other  foot,  and  so  on,  all  the  time  shouting  "  Hi-pa  ! 
Hi-ya!  Ho-ya!  He-pa!" — mingled  in  between  their 
dronings,  boastings,  and  the  shrill  tones  of  whistles. 

In  the  very  center  of  the  ring,  was  a  large  iron 
kettle,  containing  a  cooked  dog.  As  the  dance  deep 
ened  in  fervor,  a  young  brave  with  simulated  shyness 
as  if  expecting  an  attack  by  the  dog,  struck  it  with 
tomahawk  and  hunting  knife,  cut  off  some  meat, 
dipped  a  hand  into  the  stew,  and  giving  a  fierce  war- 
whoop  he  tossed  the  bit  of  meat  into  the  fire. 

As  the  young  brave  finished  the  ceremony,  shouts 
of  approval  were  given  by  his  associates  while  the 
squaws  grunted  again  and  again.  The  ceremony 
depicted  the  approach  to,  attack  on,  and  killing  of  a 
white  soldier  by  an  Indian.  The  act  of  dipping  his 
hand  into  the  liquid,  was  to  symbolize  their  belief 
that  a  warrior  having  killed  a  foe,  who  wets  his  hand, 
or  hands,  in  the  victim's  blood,  will  be  given  the 
power  to  destroy  all  other  foes. 

All  the  braves,  two  or  three  at  a  time,  went  through 
the  same  ceremony.  They  were  Agency  fed  Indians 
preparing  to  take  the  war-path ! 

Then  the  music  and  noise  making  ceased,  and  an 
old  chief  addressed  the  braves  in  their  own  tongue, 
urging  united  resistence  to  the  whites.  Other  chiefs 
made  like  appeals. 

All  said  and  done,  it  was  a  war-meeting.  We 
now  knew  what  to  expect ! 

Indian  men  are  far  better  looking  than  Indian 
women.  This  is  due  to  the  practical  enslavement  of 
the  squaws,  who  have  to  do  all  the  hard  work— cook 
the  food,  care  for  game,  dress  hides,  make  clothing, 
cut  and  carry  wood,  submit  to  gross  indignities.  The 
braves  are,  with  rare  exceptions,  hard  taskmasters. 


36        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    EIGHT. 

Death  at  the  Fort — Solemn  Funeral — Attempts  at  Escape 

—Officer    With  Grit— Chronic  Trouble  Maker  Gets 

Bob-Tail  Discharge — Drummed  Out  of  Camp. 

ONLY  one  man  died  at  Fort  Rice  during  the 
whole  winter,  W.  Baker,  of  "  D  "  Company.  He  died 
with  the  diphtheria,  and  was  buried  with  military 
honors,  which  were  conducted  in  the  following  manner- 

The  body  was  dressed  in  full  uniform  and  placed 
in  a  neat  coffin,  and  resting  in  a  ward  at  the  hospital* 
was  viewed  by  all  the  men  at  the  Post.  After  all 
take  final  look  upon  the  silent  face  that  was  but  a 
short  time  before  wreathed  in  smiles,  the  Companies 
were  formed  in  line  in  front  of  the  hospital,  and 
as  the  body  was  carried  out,  they  presented  arms,  the 
trumpets  were  played  and  the  coffin  was  placed 
on  the  two  gun  caissons  which  had  been  joined, 
were  trimmed  with  black,  and  draped  with  the 
the  garrison  flag — the  flag  that  Baker  had  helped  to 
unfurl  so  many  times. 

Hitched  to  the  caissons  were  six  horses,  each  with 
a  large  black  plume  on  its  head,  and  each  led  by  a 
dismounted  trooper.  Then  came  the  horse  that  Baker 
had  ridden.  It  was  saddled  bridled,  equipped  as  for 
a  march,  and  his  boots  were  tied  in  the  stirrups  with 
the  heels  to  the  front.  This  horse  was  led  by  two 
troopers. 

Then  followed  the  four  companies  of  the  7th  Cav 
alry—"  A,"  "  A"  "  H,"  "  M,  "  with  carbines  reversed 
and  on  foot.  The  line  led  by  eight  trumpeters, 
playing  the  funeral  march,  slowly  crossed  the  parade, 
pased  the  guard-house;  where  the  guard  stood  with 
arms  at  a  present,  then  to  the  cemetery,  a  short 
distance  away. 

Arrived  at  the  cemetery  the  troops  were  formed 
on  three  sides  of  the  grave.  The  burial  service  was 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          37 


then  read  by  the  Post  Adjutant.  Then  the  firing 
party  fired  three  rounds  over  the  open  grave.  Then 
Taps  were  sounded  by  one  of  the  trumpeters,  and  we 
marched  back  to  the  Fort,  all  much  impressed  by  the 
scene  we  had  just  witnessed. 

There  was  a  great  deal  of  trouble  with  the  pri 
soners  at  the  guard-house  during  the  winter. 

There  are  men  in  the  regular  army  of  the  same 
class  as  those  that  keep  police  courts  busy.  As  often 
as  they  get  cash  enough  to  get  drunk  on,  such  men 
go  on  a  spree.  These  nuisances  should  be  fired,  for 
the  good  of  the  service. 

Company  "M"  was  afflicted  with  one  of  the  worst 
of  the  species.  His  name  was  Smith.  He  was  a  New 
York  City  bum.  He  was  in  the  guard-house  the 
most  of  the  time.  He  would  get  drunk,  pick  quarrels 
and  fight  on  the  least  chance.  He  was  the  lowest  of 
type.  He  and  a  number  of  chronic  bums  from  other 
companies,  caused  guards  a  great  deal  of  trouble. 

When  detailed  for  guard  duty,  (before  I  was  pro 
moted  to  the  position  of  Trumpeter),  again  and 
again  I  have  received  orders  "  Not  to  permit  a  prison 
er  to  escape ;  to  shoot  a  prisoner  making  such  an 
attempt  if  he  did  not  halt  when  ordered  to !"  I  never 
had  trouble  with  a  prisoner  placed  in  my  charge. 

When  new  to  the  service,  on  an  occasion  when  I 
was  detailed  to  guard  and  placed  in  charge  of  some 
prisoners  required  to  chop  wood  some  distance  from 
camp,  the  Officer  of  the  Day  told  me  I  must  "  shoot 
any  prisoner  who  attempted  a  get-away  and  failed  to 
halt  when  ordered  to  do  so."  For  my  own  protection 
I  most  respectfully  asked  the  officer  to  deliver  the 
order  to  shoot  to  me  in  writing,  and  signed.  "  Then," 
I  added,  "  I  will  either  bring  all  my  prisoners  in,  or 
will  furnish  jobs  for  the  Surgeon  and  Undertaker." 

The  officer  declined  to  do  this. 


38        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

Evidently  the  drastic  order  or  suggestion  was  not 
meant  to  be  taken  literally.  Those  on  guard  duty 
must  keep  within  the  bounds  of  reason. 

The  bums  get  bottles  of  liquor  at  the  sutler's 
store.  The  sutler  is  permitted  to  sell  intoxicants. 

But  to  return  to  Smith. 

On  an  occasion  when  Smith  and  six  others  were 
prisoners  in  the  guard-house,  every  one  of  them  in 
shackles,  they  dug  out  and  made  a  temporary  get 
away.  Smith  was  the  leader.  These  men  wore  the 
shakles  while  digging  a  tunnel  under  a  couple  of  the 
logs  that,  standing  on  end,  three  feet  in  the  earth, 
formed  the  guard  house  walls.  It  was  an  old  stockade. 

The  jail-break  took  place  shortly  before  daybreak. 
It  was  quickly  discovered.  The  fugitives  were  soon 
captured — all  but  Smith.  He  was  not  found  until  near 
night  the  next  day,  when  Lieutenant  Eckerson  dis 
covered  Smith  riding  an  army  horse  a  couple  of  miles 
from  camp,  and  brought  him  back. 

Smith  afterwards  told  that  he  had  hiden  for 
a  whole  day  in  the  loft  directly  over  the  room 
occupied  by  the  guard  at  the  guard-house  !  How  he 
got  there  was  never  found  out.  Smith  would  not 
tell. 

Soon  after  this  Smith  was  given  a  bobtail  discharge 
and  escorted  out  of  camp  by  a  guard  of  soldiers.  He 
was  told  not  to  show  himself  here  again. 

A  bobtail  discharge  is  one  with  the  character  clause 
torn  off,  and  is  considered  the  most  disgraceful  one  a 
soldier  can  receive. 


FIGHTING     INDIANS         39 


CHAPTER    NINE. 

Seventh  Calvary  Makes  an  Early  Morning  Dash — Captures 

a  Large   Herd    of  Indian  War    Ponies — The  Reds 

Greatly  Surprised — Legend  of  Standing  Rock. 

EARLY  the  morning  after  the  War  Dance  and 
Pow-Wow  at  the  Indian  village,  Boots  and  Saddles 
was  sounded,  and  in  a  few  minutes  our  cavalrymen 
were  speeding  across  the  prairie  in  the  direction  of 
the  ponies  the  Indians  had  refused  to  surrender  on 
demand.  These  animals  were  grazing  about  a  mile 
from  the  Indian  village.  The  red  warriors  swarmed 
from  their  tepees  and  started  in  the  direction  of  their 
ponies.  Our  Rodman  was  wheeled  into  position  and 
a  couple  of  shells,  the  fuses  cut  short,  exploded  but 
a  short  distance  ahead  of  the  reds.  Most  of  the  pack 
whirled  about  and  speeded  for  their  tepees,  others 
stood  iresolute  and  bewildered.  The  Catling  guns 
sang  rapidly  for  a  few  seconds,  and  how  those 
reds,  so  boastful  at  their  war  dance  the  night  before, 
did  "beat  it!" 

The  pony  herd  was  completely  surrounded  by  the 
Cavalry.  After  a  brief  confab  between  our  Com 
mander  and  a  number  of  Chiefs,  the  captured  ponies 
were  driven  directly  to  our  camp,  and  a  mounted 
guard  placed  in  charge  of  them. 

Then  these  reds  were  at  our  mercy.  They  are, 
as  a  general  thing,  not  good  fighters  on  foot. 

We  hunted  for  more  ponies  and  arms,  but  without 
result.  No  doubt  some  of  their  best  war  ponies  had 
been  driven  away  during  the  night.  We  found  one 
fine  war  pony  tied  down  on  the  ground,  hidden  in  a 
clump  of  sage  brush,  within  a  mile  of  the  Agency. 

If  these  so-called  warriors  possessed  the  courage 
to  fight  us,  we  would  have  had  our  hands  full,  but 
they  were  afraid  of  the  "  big  heap  guns."  There  is 


40        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


no  doubt  but  the  Rodman  and  Catling  guns  kept  us 
out  of  a  terrible  fight,  and  probably  prevented  defeat 
with  all  its  occompanying  horrors. 


There  is  an  Indian  legend  about  the  origin  of 
Standing  Rock.  It  runs  about  as  follows : 

"  Long  ago  there  was  young  squaw,  the  beauty  of 
the  tribe  and  loved  by  all,  who  married  a  young  chief 
who  was  powerful  as  a  warrior.  In  a  battle  with 
another  tribe  this  chief  was  killed.  As  soon  as  his 
squaw  learned  of  his  death,  she  took  their  infant  and 
went  out  on  the  prairie,  where  she  stood  and  mourned 
the  loss  of  her  brave  until  she  turned  to  stone  !" 

The  story  is  believed  by  the  Indians.  There  is  the 
Standing  Rock  to  prove  it.  The  rock,  as  it  stands, 
suggests  the  form  of  a  squaw  with  a  papoose  slung 
on  her  back. 

Indians  passing  that  way — and  many  that  made 
made  pilgrimages  for  the  purpose — placed  choice  bits 
of  meat,  also  medicine  bags,  at  the  foot  of  Standing 
Rock.  They  say  that  the  spirits  of  the  chief  and  his 
squaw  come  and  get  the  offerings  and  take  them  to 
Happy  Huntings,  where  they  dwell  in  joy  supreme, 
a  place  no  pale  face  can  enter. 


:'  There  are  a  good  many  Indians  here,  Colonel," 
one  of  the  officers  remarked  to  Colonel  Sturges. 

"  The  good  Indians  are  up  there  on  those  poles," 
was  the  Colonel's  reply,  as  the  pointed  towards  a 
ridge,  not  far  away,  where  the  reds  placed  the  bodies 
of  their  dead. 

The  body  is  rolled  tightly  in  a  blanket  or  a  buffalo 
skin,  (together  with  his  hunting  and  fighting  equip 
ment  if  a  brave),  with  pipe,  tobacco,  and  medicine 
bags  to  keep  evil  spirits  away.  After  the  body  has 


FIGHTING  INDIA  NS        41 


been  prepared  in  this  way  it  is  placed  on  a  scaffold  of 
poles,  elevated  eight  or  ten  feet  above  ground. 

Should  the  dead  be  a  warrior,  his  favorite  pony  is 
tied  to  one  of  the  supporting  poles,  and  left  there  to 
starve  to  death.  This  proceedure  is  to  provide  the 
dead  with  a  mount  on  which  to  ride  in  the  hereafter. 

The  Colonel's  only  son  was  killed   in  the  Custer 
Massacre,  and  undoubtedly  he  meant  what  he  said. 
***** 

After  spending  a  few  days  at  Standing  Rock 
Agency,  our  command  took  the  back  trail  for  Fort 
Rice  and  Fort  A.  Lincoln,  where  the  men  were  to  go 
into  Winter  quarters.  We  had  about  two  thousand 
ponies  taken  from  the  Indians  at  the  Agency,  and  a 
wagon  load  of  old  guns,  sabres  and  revolvers,  among 
the  latter  some  of  the  old-time  flint-lock  variety. 

Our  trip  thus  far  had  been  but  a  mild  kind  of  an 
outing,  and  nothing  happened  on  our  return  to  break 
the  dull  monotony  of  the  march. 

We  passed  a  great  many  Indians  on  the  way  to 
Agency,  and  they  gave  us  a  wide  berth.  They  were 
anxious  to  reach  the  Agency,  there  to  pass  the  Win 
ter,  living  and  recruiting  at  the  expense  of  the 
Government  to  go  on  the  war-path  in  the  Spring. 

We  passed  a  farm  where  two  years  ago  a  settler 
had  been  raided  by  a  war-party  of  Sioux.  The  settler, 
his  wife  and  son  were  killed  and  scalped,  the  daugh 
ter  was  spared.  The  farm  stock  and  all  property  the 
savages  could  use  was  stolen,  the  rest  was  burned. 

The  girl,  only  eleven  years  of  age,  was  taken  to 
their  village,  where  she  was  compelled  to  marry  a 
young  warrior  and  do  his  work  the  same  as  an  old 
squaw  would.  This  was  told  by  an  Indian  who  was 
one  of  the  party.  He  also  said  that  the  girl  went 
crazy,  recently,  and  with  her  infant  in  her  arms 
and  plunged  into  the  Missouri  river,  mother  and 
child  being  drowned. 


42  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


The  place  where  the  settler,  wife  and  son  were 
murdered,  was  now  the  site  of  a  substantial  log  cabin, 
surrounded  by  grain  fields,  while  in  front  of  the  open 
door  three  little  settlers  watched  the  soldiers  ride  past. 

I  was  told  how  a  white  man,  captured  by  Indian 
warriors,  was  turned  over  to  their  squaws  to  be 
tortured.  His  clothing  was  all  stripped  from  his  body 
by  the  squaws,  who  then  threw  him  on  the  ground 
and  tied  his  out-seretched  arms  and  legs  to  firmly 
driven  stakes.  Then  they  stuck  numerous  pitch-pine 
splinters  into  his  body,  and  set  the  protruding  ends 
on  fire,  and  then  the  squaws  danced  about  the 
victim  of  their  cruelty.  When  he  would  scream  in 
agony  they  would  spit  on  him  and  call  him  a  coward. 
This  torture  was  continued  for  several  hours,  and 
reached  its  climax  when  one  of  the  squaws  cut  a  piece 
of  flesh  from  the  man's  thigh  and  thrust  it  into  his 
mouth  and  he  became  a  raving  maniac. 

Finally,  tiring  of  the  sport,  they  left  him,  jet  alive 
and  tied  to  the  stakes,  on  the  open  prairie.  There 
the  body,  or  what  was  left  of  it  after  supplying  food 
for  prowling  animals,  was  found  a  few  days  later  and 
buried  by  a  party  of  miners. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        43 

CHAPTER    TEN. 

In  Winter  Quarters — Post    Duties — The    Day's    Round  of 
Trumpet  Calls — Camp  Amusements — Trip  to  Stand 
ing  Rock — Guest  of  a  Zealous  Missionaries. 

WE  ARRIVED  at  Fort  Rice  about  the  first  of  Decem 
ber,  and  then  had  to  work  pretty  hard,  getting  the 
forage  and  hay  to  the  stables,  as  the  corn  had  been 
left  on  the  bank  of  the  river  during  the  summer  by 
the  steamers.  Stables  had  to  be  repaired,  and  wood 
cut  and  drawn  to  the  post  for  the  cold  weather  that 
was  sure  to  reach  that  portion  of  the  country  at  an 
eary  date. 

The  arms  captured  from  the  Indians  at  Standing 
Rock  Agency  were  turned  over  to  the  Ordinance 
Officer,  and  the  ponies  were,  on  their  arrival  at  Fort 
A.  Lincoln,  placed  in  change  of  herders  and  started 
for  St.  Paul,  where  they  were  to  be  sold  for  the  bene 
fit  of  the  Government. 

I  learne'd  that  only  about  700  ponies  reached  St. 
Paul,  the  rest  having  "  got  lost."  Uncle  Sam  is  easy ! 

We  passed  the  winter  at  Fort  Rice,  going  through 
the  following  routine  day  after  day  :— 

At  the  first  streak  of  daylight  in  the  morning 
First  Gall  for  Reveille  would  be  sounded  by  the  Trum 
peter  of  the  Guard,  and  ten  minutes  later  Assembly. 
Then  all  would  fall  in  for  the  company  parades,  and 
stand  at  parade  rest  while  Assembly  was  sounded  by 
all  the  trumpeters. 

At  6:30  Mess  Call  would  announce  that  the  scorch 
ed  hash,  or  slftmgullion,  as  we  called  it,  was  ready, 
when  the  men  would  repair  to  the  mess  room.  We 
had  potatoes,  soft  bread,  bacon,  bean  soup,  baked 
beans,  and  beef  stews  for  changes,  and,  taken  as  a 
whole,  we  lived  pretty  well,  especially  before  our  old 
First  Sergeant,  John  Ryan,  was  discharged  by  reason 


44        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 

of  his  term  of  enlistment  expiring.  He  was  the  best 
non-com  in  the  7th.  That  is  what  his  men  thought. 
He  was  always  ready  to  see  that  the  men  got  all  they 
were  entitled  to,  whether  there  was  a  big  company 
fund  or  not. 

At  7:30,  Sick  Gall  would  assemble  those  who  were 
either  sick,  or  wished  to  get  rid  of  some  duty,  to  the 
Dispensary,  where  the  Surgeon  would  examine  them 
and  prescribe  for  them.  Those  who  were  able  to  be 
around  were  marked  for  "  Quarters  " — which  meant 
that  they  were  free  from  all  duty  and  must  stay  in 
there  quarters,  and  those  who  were  very  sick,  were 
assigned  to  a  cot  in  the  Hospital. 

It  frequently  happened  that  some  of  the  patients 
would  have  a  "big  head,"  or  be  too  lazy  to  breathe 
freely,  when  they  would  go  on  the  sick  report,  and 
try  to  pay  off  on  the  Doctor  to  get  rid  of  duty,  but  it 
would  not  take  him  very  long  to  tumble  to  their 
racket,  and  how  his  eyes  would  twinkle  !  Then  what 
a  dose  they  would  get !  Castor  Oil,  Jalop;  anything  to 
keep  them  moving  would  be  administered  in  a  good 
big  dose  !  Doctor  Taylor  would  see  that  it  was  taken, 
too !  After  the  dose  was  down  the  mark  was  for 
extra  duty,  which  meant  that  the  man  was  to  be  given 
an  extra  amount  of  the  work  he  was  trying  to  avoid. 

At  8th  o'clock  Fatigue  Call  would  be  sounded,  and 
the  men  that  had  been  detailed  the  evening  before 
would  start  out  for  the  work  that  was  to  be  done  that 
day.  The  Guards  go  to  the  guard-house,  the  Saddler 
would  go  to  his  little  log  hut  and  work  at  repairing 
halters  and  saddles,  the  sawmill  men  would  go  to  the 
Government  mill  and  saw  lumber  to  be  used  in  the 
different  buildings,  the  Quartermaster's  men  would 
report  at  the  store-houses,  the  Stable  Police  to  the 
stables,  Kitchen  Police  to  the  kitchens  and  mess  room. 
There  was  always  plenty  to  do,  but  none  of  it  hard 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         45 

enough  to  hurt  a  man.    No  soldier  ever  over  works. 

At  9  o'cock  there  would  be  First  Call  for  Guard 
Mounting,  then  Assembly  of  Guard  Details,  and 
Trumpeters,  when  the  Trumpeters  from  the  different 
companies  would  gather  on  the  parade  and  play  a 
march  while  the  guard  details  marched  out  and  were 
received  and  placed  in  proper  position  on  the  parade 
by  the  Sergeant  Major,  when  they  would  be  reported 
to  the  Adjutant  as  ready  for  inspection.  The  Trump 
eters  would  then  play  a  waltz  while  the  guard  was 
being  inspected. 

The  new  guard  would  then  march  in  review,  or  to 
the  Guard  House,  where  they  would  relieve  the  old 
guard  and  take  charge  of  the  prisoners  and  all  pro 
perty  that  was  to  be  guarded.  The  man  chosen  by 
the  Adjutant  as  the  cleanest  and  with  the  best  look, 
ing  equipment,  would  report  to  the  Commanding 
Officer  as  his  Orderly,  a  position  all  tried  to  get,  as 
an  Orderly  did  not  have  to  stand  guard  nor  do  much 
of  anything  but  buzz  the  hired  girl  in  the  kitchen, 
and  eat  up  all  the  cold  victuals  he  could  find.  This 
was  called  "  dog  robbing," —  a  very  suitable  name  ! 

After  guard  mounting,  Water  and  Stable  Calls 
would  summons  every  man  not  on  other  duty,  to  the 
stables.  Each  man  wore  a  white  frock  and  overalls, 
and  they  were  a  prim-looking  Jot  as  they  marched  to 
to  the  stables.  The  horses  would  be  led  to  the  river 
for  water,  then  returned  to  the  stables  and  groomed 
for  a  whole  hour  under  the  immediate  direction  of 
the  First  Sergeant,  and  weo  to  the  man  who  did  not 
give  his  horse  strict  attention  and  a  thorough  going 
over  with  currycomb  and  brush.  The  shirker  would 
have  an  hour  or  more  added  to  his  work,  and  there 
he  had  to  stay  when  the  rest  went  to  their  quarters 
and  had  nothing  to  do  for  almost  a  whole  hour. 

Recall  would   be  sounded  at    12  o'clock,  and  all 


46         SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

work  would  be  dropped  and  preparations  made  for 
dinner. 

First  Sergeant's  Call  would  follow,  and  the  First 
Sergeants  would  go  to  the  Adjutant's  Office  and  get 
their  morning  reports. 

Twelve-Thirty  Mess  Call  would  announce  that 
dinner  was  ready,  and  the  men,  also,  were  pretty 
sure  to  be  ready. 

One  o'clock  would  again  be  the  time  for  Fatigue 
Call,  when  the  different  details  would  proceed  to  kill 
time,  as  they  had  been  doing  all  the  forenoon. 

If  the  weather  was  fine,  Drill  Call  would  be  sound 
ed  at  2:30,  and  then  the  men  would  put  on  their  belts 
and  sabres,  and  their  longest  faces,  and  fall  in.  Some 
times  it  would  be  dismounted  drill,  and  at  other  times 
mounted,  and  then  for  a  change  me  would  have  target 
practice,  and  once  a  great  while— best  of  all — no  drill 
or  target  practice. 

At  4:00  o'clock  Recall  would  announce  that  the 
time  had  come  to  cease  work  and  drill.  Then  the 
privates  would  don  their  white  suits  and  be  ready  for 
Water  and  Stable  Call,  which  was  sounded  at  4:30, 
when  the  "  Government  ghosts  "  would  again  march 
to  the  stables  and  water  and  groom  the  horses. 

At  sunset,  First  Gall,  then  Assembly,  would  be 
sounded,  when  the  men  would  assemble  on  the  Com 
pany  parades  and  answer  to  their  names  as  they  were 
called  by  the  First  Sergeants,  after  which  Retreat 
would  be  sounded  by  all  the  trumpeters,  and  the 
evening  gun  would  be  fired  at  the  last  note. 

The  men  would  now  have  nothing  to  do  until  8:30, 
when  First  Call  for  Tattoo  and  then  Assembly,  would 
again  call  them  to  the  parades,  when  the  trumpeters 
would  play  Tattoo;  then,  the  roll  being  called, 
they  would  be  reported  to  the  Adjutant,  and  the  day 
would  close  with  Taps,  sounded  by  the  Trumpeter  of 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         47 

the  Guard  at  exactly  9  o'clock,  when  all  lights  in  the 
men's  quarters  must  be  extinguished. 

All  would  then  be  still  except  the  click  of  billiard 
balls  in  the  Officers'  Club  room  at  the  Sutler's. 

Each  hour  the  guards  would  call  out  something 
like  this :  "  Post  Number  2,  ten  o'clock  and  all's 
well !" 

This  kind  of  soldiering  gets  very  monotonous 
after  a  while,  and  then  the  boys  get  permissioon  to 
have  a  stag-dance,  when  we  have  fun  all  by  ourselves 
and  no  officers  to  bother  us.  We  dance  all  the  popu 
lar  dances  and  take  turns  being  the  opposite  sex. 

We  would  also  practice  with  foils,  boxing  gloves, 
and  on  horizontal  bars,  and  even  handle  little,  wicked 
pasteboard  cards. 

Every  way  and  everything  that  could  be  thought 
of  would  be  brought  into  use  to  help  pass  away  the 
time,  as  vou  may  rest  assured  that  thirty-five  miles 
from  a  post  office,  and  mail  only  once  a  week,  was  a 
very  lonely  location. 

While  the  days  were  slowly  dragging  along  in  this 
manner,  we  had  a  visit  from  the  Paymaster,  and  we 
were  right  glad  to  see  him,  too.  After  paying  the 
troops  here,  he  was  going  to  Standing  Rock,  and  pay 
troops  at  that  place. 

I  asked  the  Captain  for  permission  to  accompany 
the  Paymaster  and  his  escort  to  Standing  Rock.  I  was 
given  a  pass  for  three  days  with  permission  to  use 
my  horse  if  I  wanted  to.  So  I  joined  the  escort  that 
went  with  the  Paymaster  down  to  the  Agency. 

We  left  Fort  Rice  early  in  the  morning,  with  the 
temperature  13  degrees  below  zero. 

My  horse  was  all'horse  that  day.  He  had  got  but 
little  exercise  since  we  went  into  Winter  quarters. 
He  would  not  walk.  Often  he  had  all  his  feet  in  the 
air  at  once.  My  mount  had  a  good  time  ! 


48        SEVENTH  CAV ALRY 


We  crossed  the  Missouri  river  on  the  ice,  and 
then  kept  along  with  the  ambulance,  that  carried 
the  paymaster  and  his  clerk.  Our  ride  was  a  long  and 
cold  one,  but  there  were  no  exciting  incidents  in  it, 
We  did  not  arriye  at  the  Agency  until  about  dark  on 
the  same  day,  having  marched  over  forty-five  miles. 

We  put  our  horses  out  in  the  shed,  and  then  start 
ed  for  the  Catholic  Indian  Mission  which  is  but  a  short 
distance  from  the  Agency,  and  were  very  cordially 
received  by  Fathers  Martin  and  Chrisostum,  and 
were  soon  seated  at  a  table  that  was  just  loaded  with 
good  things.  We  had  a  regular  feast. 

After  supper  we  walked  down  to  the  Infantry 
quarters  and  spent  a  very  pleasant  evening  with  the 
men.  It  was  here  that  I  learned  much  of  the  way 
that  the  Indian  Agents  rob  the  Indians  and  cause 
most  of  the  Indians  wars. 

After  Tattoo  we  returned  to  the  Mission  for  the 
night,  and  slept  in  a  clean  warm  bed  that  night,  for 
the  first  time  in  nearly  a  year ! 

In  the  morning  we  attended  the  services  in  the 
Chapel,  and  then  visited  around  all  day.  I  spent  a 
good  portion  of  th£  time  at  the  Indian  village  that  I 
helped  take  the  ponies  from  in  the  Fall.  The  Indians 
were  all  very  friendly. 

I  returned  to  the  Mission  again  that  night.  There 
an  Indian  couple  got  married  that  night.  They  were 
as  tickled  as  a  boy  with  a  new  gun.  The  man  was 
about  forty  and  the  squaw  nearly  as  old,  and  they 
had  three  children  to  start  housekeeping  on. 

We  started  on  our  return  trip  in  the  morning,  glad 
that  we  had  taken  the  "  vacation,"  but  sore  and  lame. 
My  horse  was  as  lively  as  when  he  left  the  stable 
at  Fort  Rice.  :'  There  is  no  place  like  home,"  we 
thought  when  we  arrived  in  sight  of  the  garrison 
and  were  mighty  glad  to  take  our  place  beside  the 
warm  fire  at  Fort  Rice. 


FIGHTING     INDIANS         49 


CHAPTER    ELEVEN. 

Indians  at  Home — Garments  of    Adults    of    Both    Sexes 

Much  Alike — Untidy  and  Preyed  Upon  by  Vermin 

—Little  Lads  Skilful  With  Bow  and  Arrow. 

DID  YOU  ever  see  Indians  in  their  own  homes  ?  I 
will  try  and  give  you  a  description  of  them  as  they 
appeared  to  me,  and  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  it  will 
be  news  to  many  who  have  been  in  the  habit  of  read- 
Ing  the  firey,  untamed  stories  that  are  enclosed  in 
yellow  covers. 

Come  with  me  to  the  prairie  back  of  the  post 
sutler's  at  Fort  Rice,  where  there  are  represented 
three  different  branch  tribes  of  Indians — Crow,  Reeve 
and  Sioux.  They  live  in  there  own  wild  style,  and 
visits  to  their  villages  and  camps,  and  on  all  their 
special  ceremonies,  recalls  to  my  mind  the  great 
curiosity  they  were  to  rne;  and  with  a  desire  to  learn 
of  them,  and  from  them,  I  paid  particular  attention 
to  all  that  happened. 

In  the  first  place,  as  you  near  the  village,  you 
observe  what  to  you  looks  like  a  woman,  with  a  long 
blanket  thrown  over  her  head,  standing  in  front 
of  one  of  the  tepees.  Holding  your  nose — for  the 
stench  is  terrible;  worse  than  that  of  a  soap  factory  or 
tannery  aroma.  You  approach  as  near  as  you  think 
is  safe,  when  all  at  once  the  supposed  woman  turns 
towards  you,  and  you  see  that  it  is  a  man. 

The  dress  of  the  sexes  is  very  similar.  With  their 
blankets  on  it  is  almost  impossible  to  tell  them  apart 
until  they  speak  !  You  approach  nearer,  are  greeted 
with  a  gutteral  "  how-how  "  and  respond  "  how. "  This 
is  the  common  practice  of  Simon-pure  savages  of 
the  Far  West.  Look  at  his  dress — if  it  can  be  called 
dress  or  anything  else — see  what  is  it  made  of,  and 
how  it  is  made  ?  Well,  it  is  made  of  three  pieces  of 
blanket,  one  piece  for  each  leg,  and  the  third  and 


50        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


larger  piece  is  shirt,  vest  and  coat.  The  legs  are 
made  by  sewing  the  pieces  together  up  one  side,  and 
a  strip  of  the  same  material  comes  up  on  the  outside 
and  fastens  into  the  belt,  which  holds  it  up.  The 
other  leg  is  made  in  the  same  manner.  Take  a  pair 
of  old  pants,  cut  the  front  and  back  out  of  them,  and 
you  have  an  extra  good  pair  of  Indian  pants. 

The  great  and  only  redeeming  feature  of  this  kind 
of  pants  is  that  they  cannot  be  put  on  back  side  in 
front,  as  there  is  neither  back  or  front  in  them  !  A 
necktie  of  rabbit-tails  or  beaver  fur  is  worn  around 
the  wrists — don't  know  why,  and  I  do  not  think  that 
the  Indian  does,  either,  as  I  never  found  a  red  that 
could,  or  who  would  tell.  His  hair  is  long  with  bits 
of  fur  tied  onto  the  end  of  each  one  of  the  braids, 
at  each  side  of  the  head,  and  a  bunch  of  eagle  feath 
ers  stuck  in  the  scalp-lock,  a  small  bunch  of  hair 
braided  together  on  the  top  of  the  head.  His  feet  are 
covered  with  moccasins,  made  from  the  hide  of  the 
deer  or  buffalo,  and  trimmed  with  many  different 
colored  beads.  A  large  knife  stuck  in  a  rudely  con- 
stucted  sheath,  is  at  his  belt,  always  ready  for 
instant  use. 

The  squaws  dress  in  much  the  same  manner,  with 
the  one  exception  that  they  sometimes  have  a  short 
skirt  made  of  some  fancy-colored  calico.  They  are  all 
dirty,  lousy,  and  lazy.  I  have  sat  and  watched  Indians 
hunt  vermin  on  their  bodies,  much  after  the  same 
manner  that  monkeys  do  in  their  cages  at  the 
circus.  See  her  thrust  her  hand  in  under  her  blanket  ! 
Do  not  be  afraid.  She  is  not  after  her  knife — they  all 
carry  them,  too — she  is  after  the  gay  and  happy  louse. 

In  this  same  manner  I  have  seen  white  ladies  in 
Louisiana  go  after  the  gay  and  festive  flea  ! 

Indians  and  a  lice  are  always  the  closest  of 
neighbors,  and  have  much  in  common 

This  is  all  there  is  of  an  Indian,   unless  it  is  the 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         51 

smell,  and  you  would  not  be    allowed  to  carry  that 
around  with  you,  eyen  in  an  assafetida  factory. 

That  stringy-looking  stuff  hanging  on  those  long 
poles  is  meat  that  is  being  jerked.  Help  yourself  to 
some  and  see  how  it  tastes.  Those  long  strings  there 
are  not  carpet-rags,  they  are  the  inwards  of  a  beef 
and  will  be  roasted  and  eaten  for  dinner  ;  can't  you 
•tay  and  take  dinner  with  them  ?  Take  some  of  this, 
it  is  the  very  choicest  delicacy  that  they  have,  and 
cannot  be  bought — it  is  dog  meat,  and  very  highly 
prized  by  them. 

I  have  watched  the  little  Indian  boys,  as  with  their 
bows  and  arrows,  they  hunted  the  blackbirds  that 
hung  around  the  post,  and  they  kill  a  great  many  of 
them.  See  that  little  fellow  there,  not  over  three 
foot  high  and  about  six  years  old.  See  how  he  creeps 
along  on  tip-toe  towards  the  birds.  How  his  eyes 
sparkle,  like  a  cat's  that  is  watching  a  mouse;  he  does 
not  make  the  least  bit  of  noise  as  he  gets  nearer  and 
nearer  to  his  game.  Now  he  stops  and  raises  his  bow 
slowly  before  his  face,  and  with  hardly  a  pause  the 
arrow  is  let  loose,  and  he  gives  a  grunt  of  satisfac 
tion  as  one  of  the  birds  turns  over  on  its  back.  No 
wonder  reds  are  the  best  of  hunters  as  that  is  all 

they  do. 

***** 

One  morning  just  after  guard  mount,  a  long,  lank, 
consumptive-looking  soldier  entered  the  dispensary, 
holding  on  to  his  lower  jaw,  just  as  though  he  was 
afraid  that  it  would  get  away  from  him,  and  groan 
ing  all  the  time.  No  use  to  ask  what  is  the  matter, 
it  is  evident  that  he  is  a  victim  of  intense  tooth 
ache.  He  not  only  has  the  tooth  ache,  but  has  arrived 
at  that  stage  of  the  game  when  a  man  decides  to 
have  the  blasted  thing  pulled,  if  it  takes  the  whole  top 
of  his  head  off. 

"  Steward,"  he  calls  out,  "  Give  me  some  chloro 
form.  I  have  a  tooth  to  come  out,  and  can't  stand  the 


52  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

operation  without  taking  something."  While  the 
Steward  was  getting  ready  to  do  the  job,  Jim  gazed 
out  of  the  window  groaning  and  wishing  he  was  dead. 

As  he  sat  there  he  saw  one  of  the  company 
laundresses  and  the  wife  of  an  officer  approach  and 
pass  each  other,  coming  from  opposite  sides  of  the 
parade.  Both  ladies  were  togged  in  their  finest  fix 
ings,  were  equally  proud  and  dignified,  and  they 
passed  each  other  with  eyes  front  and  nose  up,  as  if 
each  thought  she  owned  the  whole  reservation,  with 
the  troops  thrown  in. 

It  was  evident  that  both  ladies  just  ached  to  look 
back  and  see  what  the  other  had  on.  The  Laundress 
controlled  her  curiosity.  Not  so  the  other  lady.  She 
looked  back,  continuing  her  grand  march  as  she  did 
so,  and  disastrous  was  the  result.  She  encountered 
a  plebian  wheelbarrow,  which  had  no  respect  of  class 
or  caste.  The  wheelborrow  reared  up  and  knocked 
her  hat  off,  and  the  lady  sat  down  on  the  parade 
with  the  wheel  end  of  the  wheelbarrow  on  her  lap. 
Then  there  was  a  mix-up,  with  striped  hose  much  in 
evidence,  until  the  lady  got  the  barrow  to  lie  quiet 
for  a  moment,  when  she  sprang  to  her  feet,  recap 
tured  her  hat,  and  headed  for  her  quarters. 

Jim  saw  all  this,  and  as  the  lady  rose  to  her  feet 
and  gave  the  vicious  wheelbarrow  a  parting  kick, 
he  let  laughter  have  full  sway.  The  tooth-ache  had 
disappeared. 

"  Steward,  never  mind  the  go-to-sleep.  Haw,  haw, 
haw !  Get  your  forcips  and  yank  that  tooth  right  out 
quick.  Hee-he,  haw-haw !  I'm  tickled  to  death  and 
the  tooth  is  asleep.  He-haw ;  ha-ha-haw-he-haw  !  Out 
with  her  before  she  wakes  up." 

The  Steward  obeyed  the  order  and  the  tooth  was 
out  before  Jim  got  over  being  "  tickled." 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          53 


CHAPTER    TWELVE. 

Missouri  River  Over  Its  Banks — Camp's  Wood  Choppers 

In  Peril — Midnight  Search  for  Missing  Men — The 

Writer  Promoted  to  the  Position  of  Trumpeter. 

ALL  THE  FUEL  we  had  during  the  Winter  was 
cotton  wood.  When  green,  cotton  wood  will  not  burn 
even  fairly  well.  Men  are  detailed  to  go  up  the  river 
for  about  six  miles  and  chop  dead  cottonwood  trees. 
The  wood  is  hauled  in  on  army  wagons.  Chopping 
wood  under  such  circumstances  was  not  a  desirable 
job,  but  it  had  to  be  done. 

The  company  detail  for  this  duty  consisted  of  a 
Sergeant  and  three  choppers.  They  took  guns,  am 
munition,  and  plenty  of  grub,  and  would  camp  out 
for  a  week  at  a  time. 

While  our  company  detail  was  up  there,  there 
came  a  few  days  of  thawing  weather.  The  river  rose 
rapidly,  the  ice  went  out,  and  soon  the  Missouri  was 
over  its  banks,  and  the  bottom  lands  under  water. 

Men  were  sent  to  see  if  the  wood-choppers  were 
safe,  but  could  not  get  within  a  mile  of  the  camp,  and 
came  back  with  a  report  that  the  camp  was  flooded, 
and  not  a  chopper  could  be  seen  or  heard,  as  the 
river  covered  the  whole  bottom,  thereabouts,  from 
bluff  to  bluff. 

Here  was  a  nice  pickle.  Something  must  be  done. 
The  river  continued  to  rise.  Captain  French  and 
Lieutenant  Gersham,  came  to  the  company  quarters 
and  asked  for  volunteers  to  go  the  relief  of  the  men 
at  the  wood  camp.  There  were  plenty  of  the  men 
willing  to  go,  as  the  Sergeant,  Paddy  Ryan,  was 
popular  with  the  boys ;  and,  favorite  or  not,  our  men 
were  not  the  kind  to  refuse  to  do  all  they  could  to 
help  any  one  in  distress. 

I  had  been  promoted  to  be  one  of  the  Company 
trumpeters,  a  few  days  before,  and  was  proud  of  my 


54        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


"  Stripes  and  Bugle."  I  asked  permission  to  go  with 
the  rescue  party,  and  being  accepted,  I  suggest  that  I 
take  my  bugle  along,  as  I  could  make  the  missing 
men  hear  its  call,  and  thus  let  the  men  know  that 
help  was  near,  even  if  we  could  not  reach  them. 

We  started  from  the  Fort  about  12  o'clock  at 
night,  aboard  a  covered  wagon  drawn  by  four  horses. 
It  was  bitter  cold  and  getting  colder.  A  few  miles  out 
our  horses  were  traveling  in  water  up  to  their  bodies, 
but  we  keep  on  until  we  reach  a  sice  stream  that 
was  so  rapid  and  deep  that  we  were  compelled  to 
halt. 

Here  we  halloed,  fired  guns  and  revolvers,  and 
I  sounded  my  trumpet  again  and  again  with  all  the 
power  at  the  disposel  of  165  pounds  avoirdupois.  We 
were  within  a  mile  of  the  wood  choppers.  We  sought 
higher  land,  and,  building  a  rousing  fire  near  the 
edge  of  the  water,  waited  for  daylight. 

As  soon  as  it  was  light  enough  to  get  our  bearings 
we  made  another  attempt  to  reach  the  wood  choppers, 
but  deep  water  and  the  ice  that  had  formed  in  still 
places  during  the  night  made  impossible  nearer 
approach  to  our  objective. 

The  crest  of  the  flood  passed  towards  noon,  and 
soon  the  water  began  to  go  down.  Then  Comrade 
Atkins  and  myself,  waded  on  about  half-a-mile  and 
came  to  a  wide  and  deep  gully,  where  the  water  was 
swift,  and  which  we  could  not  cross.  Here  we  fired 
a  few  shots  and  I  blowed  calls  on  my  trumpet,  then 
we  returned  to  our  army  wagon,  and  after  warming 
up  at  the  open  fire,  our  detail  rode  back  to  the  Fort. 

We  had  heard  nothing  from  the  wood  camp  and 
did  not  know  whether  the  men  were  dead  or  alive. 

The  water  continued  to  fall  during  the  night  and 
the  next  morning  Lieutenant  Eckerson,  of  Company 
B,  mounting  a  mule,  rode  to  the  cottonwoods, 


FIGHTING   INDIANS       55 


where  he  found  the  men  all  alive.  Sergeant  Ryan 
and  one  of  the  men  were  in  a  tree,  the  others  on  the 
roof  of  the  log  cabin.  Thus,  exposed  to  the  elements, 
these  soldiers  had  spent  a  day  and  a  night. 

All  the  men  were  victims  of  the  low  temperature. 
They  were  taken  to  the  Hospital  as  soon  as  they 
were  brought  to  the  Fort.  The  feet  of  one  of  the 
men  were  so  badly  frozen  that  it  was  necessary  to 
remove  all  his  toes.  They  were  on  the  sick  list  for  a 
long  time,  but  eventually  were  marked  "  duty,"  and 
returned  to  their  companies,  ready  for  anything. 

When  Lieutenant  Eckerson  rode  into  the  wood 
camp  on  the  mule,  Sergeant  Ryan,  partly  delirous, 
began  to  make  a  verbal  report  of  the  items  of  Gov 
ernment  property  in  his  charge.  The  Lieutenant 
stopped  him,  saying: — 

"  Damn  the  Government  property  !  It  is  you  men 
that  I  want  to  get  out  of  this  place." 

Sergeant  Ryan  afterwards  told  me,  while  we  were 
celebrating  his  return  to  duty,  that  in  the  cotton- 
wood  tree,  he  heard  my  trumpet,  and  it  was  the 
sweetest  music  that  ever  reached  his  ears. 

Of  course  this  was  not  Fighting  Indians,  but  I 
have  learned  that  the  duty  of  a  soldier,  out  this  way, 
consists  more  of  downright  work  than  anything 
else. 

I  had  a  better  time  after  I  became  a  trumpeter. 

I  now  take  my  turn  as  the  Trumpeter  of  the 
Guard,  and  blow  garrison  calls,  and  I  do  not  have  to 
share  in  police  duty  or  standing  guard. 

A  trumpeter  is  the  Captain's  hitching  post,  and 
does  not  get  a  great  deal  of  time  in  which  to  gather 
moss.  He  is  liable  at  any  time,  and  especially  when 
in  the  field,  to  be  called  to  carry  dispatches  and 
orders,  not  always  a  pleasant  task,  especially  in  a 
section  where  scalp-hunting  hos tiles  are  numerous. 


56         SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN. 

Desertions  Numerous — Reasons  for  Desertions — Snobbery 

of  Officers  Resented— Bad    Solders  and  Bad  Officers 

Birds  of  a  Feather— Comradeship  With  Custer. 

TOWARDS  SPRING  the  men  began  to  desert,  and 
check  roll-calls  were  ordered.  These  calls  were  made 
as  follows  :  Sometime  during  the  night,  the  Captain 
or  a  Lieutenant  would  come  to  the  Company  quarters 
and  with  the  First  Sergeant,  would  go  from  bunk  to 
bunk,  (waking  up  those  asleep),  and  require  each 
man  to  give  his  name,  which  would  be  checked  of  as 
"present." 

The  object  of  this,  was  to  prevent  a  man  in  case 
he  deserted  getting  much  of  a  start  if  he  succeeded 
in  getting  away  from  the  post.  As  soon  as  a  man 
was  missed,  details  were  started  in  various  directions 
and  here  was  where  the  Indian  scouts  did  their  best 
work.  They  would  get  on  the  track  of  a  deserter 
and  follow  him  wherever  he  went,  and  as  there  is  a 
pretty  good  reward  for  bringing  in  a  deserter,  they 
were  very  anxious  to  find  him. 

If  a  man  did  not  answer  when  his  name  was  called 
and  the  Sergeant  did  not  know  where  he  was,  he 
would  be  marked  absent  without  leave,  and  unless  he 
could  give  a  good  account  of  himself  at  the  next  roll- 
call  to  the  guard-house  he  must  go. 

Our  company  did  not  lose  a  man  all  that  Winter, 
but  other  companies  lost  from  one  to  ten  men,  and  I 
never  heard  of  a  deserter  being  returned  after  he 
had  a  ten  or  twelve  hours  start. 

***** 

There  has  been  a  great  deal  said  and  written 
about  desertions  from  the  army  while  on  frontier 
service,  the  causes,  and  best  remedies. 

I  believe  the  principal  cause  of  desertions  is  the 
manner  in  which  many  of  the  harsh  officers  treat 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       57 


enlisted  men ;  is  due  to  the  lack  of  true  manhood 
rather  than  lack  of  knowledge.  This  applies  to  men 
put  through  the  military  "  cracker  machine  "  on  the 
Hudson  at  West  Point.  Too  many  of  the  lads  sent 
there,  are  spoiled  and  ever  after  disdain  life's  common 
duties,  be  it  in  the  army  or  elsewhere.  Bad  officers 
are  sure  to  spoil  good  soldiers. 

As  a  rule  an  army  officer  does  not  mix  with  or 
recognize  the  fact  that  elnisted  men  have  any  rights 
or  attributes  to  be  respected.  There  is,  socially, 
an  impassable  gulf  between  enlisted  men  and  their 
officers — I  qualify  this  broad  statement  by  adding, 
"  with  rare  exceptions."  General  George  A.  Custer 
was  one  of  the  rare  exceptions. 

Abraham  Lincoln,  was  one  of  the  common  people. 
He  never  forgot  the  enduring  rock  of  ages  from 
which  he  was  hewn. 

Those  who  founded  this  nation,  founded  it  on  the 
fundamental  principle,  set  forth  in  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  "  that  all  men  are  created  equal, 
that  they  are  endowed  by  their  Creator  with  certain 
unalienable  Rights,  that  among  these  are  Life, 
Liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  Happiness." 

The  aloofness  of  officers  and  harsh  treatment  of 
thair  man,  cause  a  great  deal  of  discontent,  and  hurts 
the  service. 

I  know  of  commissioned  officers  whose  evil  ways 
are  notorious.  No  decent  man  would  care  for  their 
comradeship.  But  there  as  good  men  in  the  ranks  of 
the  army  as  there  among  the  officers,  or  in  any  other 
station  in  life. 

In  my  company  we  have  one  printer,  one  tele 
graph  operator,  a  doctor,  two  lawyers,  three  profes 
sors  of  languages,  one  harness  maker,  four  cooks 
and  bakers,  two  blacksmiths,  one  jeweler,  three 
school  teachers,  also  farmers,  lumbermen,  peddlers, 
railroad  men  and  day  laborers. 


58        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    FOURTEEN. 

Spring  Breaks  at  Last— Seventh  Cavalry   Begins    Active 

Campaign — Start  from  Fort  Rice — Cavalryman's 

Outfit — So  me  Horses  Are  Peculiar — Farewells. 

SPRING  broke  at  last,  when  we  hailed  with  delight 
the  order  that  came  for  the  four  companies  of  the  7th 
Cavalry,  then  at  Fort  Rice,  Dakota  Territory,  to 
prepare  for  active  field  service  and  proceed  at  once  to 
Fort  A.  Lincoln,  there  to  join  the  remainder  of  the 
regiment,  and  to  report  to  General  S.  D.  Sturges. 

Those  who  have  never  been  in  the  army,  or  who 
have  never  seen  a  regiment  pack  up  and  be  in  the 
saddle  on  fifteen  minutes  notice,  know  nothing  of  the 
excitement,  and  you  might  say  flutter,  we  were  in,  as 
that  order  was  read  out  to  us  at  dress  parade,  at 
Retreat,  on  the  evening  of  April  16th,  1877. 

All  had  rather  endure  the  hardships  of  an  active 
compaign,  and  take  the  chances  of  being  killed  by  an 
Indian,  than  remain  in  quarters  and  be  abused 
by  stiff-necked  officers  during  the  Summer. 

I  will  now  give  you  a  brief  description  of  what  had 
to  be  done  in  two  days,  for  we  were  to  start 
in  that  time.  There  were  four  companies  of  the 
Seventh  at  Fort  Rice,  A,  D,  H  and  M,  each  one 
hundred  strong,  and  that  meant  that  four  hundred 
horses  must  be  shod  in  that  time,  a  night  and  day  job 
work  night  and  day  by  all  that  could  work  at  that 
trade.  All  the  saddles,  bridles  and  halters  had  to 
be  looked  over,  and  repaired  where  necessary,  which 
was  quite  a  job  for  the  company  saddlers  and  their 
help. 

Saddlebags,  canteens,  haversacks,  lariats,  hobbles, 
tin  cup  ,  picket  pins,  revolvers,  ammunition,  nosebags 
for  horses,  and  all  the  other  necessary  accessories 
that  go  to  make  up  a  Cavalryman's  outfit,  had  to  be 


FIGHTING   INDIA  NS        59 

got  out  of  the  storehouses  and  issued.     Oh,  no,  there 
was  not  much  to  be  done. 

Each  man  has  a  box,  or  chest,  that  he  keeps  his 
personal  property  and  kit  in,  and  all  these  must  be 
packed  and  placed  in*the  company  storehouse.  We 
were  not  to  take  anything  but  a  change  of  clothing, 
all  to  be  carried  on  the  saddle,  and  a  good  soldier 
will  make  his  load  as  light  as  possible  for  his  horse. 

Each  man  bought  a  soft  wide-rimmed  felt  cam 
paign  hat  from  the  sutler,  and  we  had  to  pay  a  good 
big  price  for  the  out-of-date  things,  too. 

We  were  all  packed  and  ready  to  move  by  the 
morning  of  the  18th  of  April,  and  after  bidding  good 
bye  to  those  who  were  to  remain  at  the  post 
during  our  absence,  we  mounted,  and  with  all  the 
trumpeters  at  the  head  of  the  column  playing  the 
tune  of  "  The  Girl  I  left  Behind  Me;'  we  marched 
through  the  parade  and  out  of  the  post,  and  were  at 
last  in  the  field.  We  marched  about  one-fourth  of 
a  mile,  and  went  into  came  for  the  night. 

The  trumpets  used  in  the  Cavalry  have  no  valves. 
but  are  nevertheless  full  of  music,  and  a  good  player 
will  make  himself  heard  a  long  distance.  We 
had  trumpets  of  different  keys,  which  we  used 
in  the  Fort.  With  these,  and  each  man  tooting  when 
his  turn  came,  we  made  pretty  fair  music. 

As  we  passed  out  of  the  north  gate  of  the  garrison 
H  Company,  of  the  Seventeenth  Infantry,  passed  in 
at  the  east  gate.  They  were  to  guard  the  post  during 
our  absence,  and  protect  the  wives  and  children  of 
absent  officers,  always  provided  with  luxuries.  "  How 
we  hate  to  leave  the  Gigger,"  was  a  remark  made  on 
all  sides  by  the  boys.  The  Gigger  was  as  black  a 
wench  as  ever  supplied  a  soldier  with  scraps  of  pie 
and  cake  from  a  Captain's  pantry.  She  was  a 
terror  ! 


60        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 


There  were  but  a  few  women  attached  to  our 
command — two  laundresses  to  each  company — and 
they  were  ladies  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  and 
were  respected  by  the  common  herd  more  then  were 
the  wives  of  the  officers.  Officers'  wives  in  the  army 
seem  to  act  just  as  though  they  had  a  right  to  give 
orders  to  the  privates,  but  they  are  the  only  ones  that 
the  rules  do  not  recognize  and  provide  for.  When  a 
command  is  on  the  move,  there  is  transportation 
furnished  for  the  laundresses,  but  their  places  at 
that  time  are  nearly  always  usurped  by  painted 
dolls.  Surgeon  Taylor's  wife  was  considered  the  only 
lady  "  across  the  parade."  The  writer  of  this  will 
always  remember  her,  with  his  best  wishes  for  the 
prosperity  of  both  herself  and  little  stranger. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  uncertainty  of  coming 
back,  I  will  here  relate  an  incident  that  happened 
the  morning  we  left  the  post:  The  companies  were 
standing  in  line,  ready  to  mount,  only  waiting  for  the 
"  Bulldozer,"  Lieutenant-Colonel  Elmer  Otis,  to  bid 
good-bye  to  his  family  for  about  the  dozenth  time, 

when  First  Sergeant  M ,  of    D  Company,  asked 

permission  to  go  to  his  quarters  and  bid  his  wife  and 
children  a  last  good-bye.  His  request  was  granted,  he 
mounted  his  horse  and  galloped  to  the  quarters,  and 
was  there  met  by  his  wife  and  children.  They  were 
all  in  tears. 

He  quickly  dismounts  and  folding  his  wife  in  his 
arms,  said  :  "  Mary,  I  have  some  kind  of  presentment 
which  tells  me  that  I  shall  not  return  with  the  boys 
when  they  come  back  in  the  Fall.  I  will  go  where 
duty  calls  me  and  may  God  take  care  of  you  and  the 
little  ones.  If  I  fall  do  not  forget  me !  Good-bye, 
little  wife." 

He  kisses  them  all,  and  then  mounting  his  horse, 
is  soon  in  his  position  at  the  head  of  his  company, 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         61 

and  as  the  command  moves  off  is  seen  to  brush  his 
sleeve  across  his  eyes  more  then  once. 

His  presentment,  or  whatever  it  was,  came  true 
He  was  shot  through  the  lungs  at  the  battle  of  Snake 
Creek,  on  the  morning  of  Chiet  Joseph's  surrender  to 
General  Miles. 

As  a  general  thing  the  officers  of  a  regiment  are 
very  cranky  after  they  leave  good  quarters,  for  field 
duty,  and  this  occasion  did  not  prove  an  exception. 

Jimminey  whiz;  how  certain  officers  made  the  man 
hunt  tactict ! 

It  was  impossible  to  please  them.  It  was  first  one 
thing  and  then  another. 

Captain  French's  horse—  "  Big-head  "  gave  him  a 
great  deal  of  trouble,  and  as  a  matter  of  course  riled 
him.  Oh,  what  a  horse  that  was.  He  would  go  along 
all  right  for  a  while,  and  then  the  first  thing  you 
knew  he  would  take  it  into  his  head  to  walk  on 
the  other  side  of  the  company;  and,  not  being  parti 
cular  where  he  went,  or  how  he  got  there,  he  would 
take  a  side  carom  on  the  company,  and  through  he 
would  go  knocking  the  men  out  of  the  line,  in  spite 
of  all  that  the  Captain  could  do  to  try  and  stop  him . 
I  have  seen  the  other  officers  laugh  at  the  antics  of 
that  sorrel.  The  Captain  said  that  it  was  the  only 
horse  he  ever  mounted  that  he  could  not  handle,  but 
that  he  had  to  give  up  beat  on  that  one. 

"  Old  Sugar,"  a  large  bay  stallion  was  bad  enough, 
but  "  Hog  "  was  rightly  named,  as  he  was  worse  then 
any  hog  I  ever  saw  for  contrariness;  you  can  drive  a 
hog,  but  you  could  neither  drive,  ride  or  back  that 
horse  where  he  did  not  want  to  go. 


62          SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    FIFTEEN.   ^ 

First  Night  Out  We  Fight  an  Intensely  Hot  Prairie  Fire 

Set  by  Hostile  Indians — Cavalry  Horses  Rush  Into 

Camp  for  Protection — Again  at  Fort  A.  Lincoln. 

THE  FIRST  DAY  out  from  Fort  Rice  We  marched 
only  18  miles,  and  then  went  into  camp  at  about  5 
o'clock  at  Dry  Springs  ravine.  This  place  gets  its 
name  from  the  many  little  springs  there,  but  which 
hardly  ever  contain  enough  water  to  fill  a  canteen. 
We  happened  to  strike  them  at  the  right  time,  and 
found  plenty  of  good  water. 

We  pitched  our  tents,  fed  and  groomed  our  horses 
and  picketed  them  out  to  graze,  after  which  I  was 
initiated  into  the  mystery  of  frying  hard-tack  and 
also  lost  my  first  ration  of  bacon  in  the  operation 
The  bacon  was  first  fried,  and  then  the  tack  was 
fried  in  the  grease,  after  which  the  mess  was  placed 
in  hot  water,  and  then  the  tack  become  tender  and 
nice.  I  got  things  rather  mixed  up,  and  set  my  bacon 
and  tack  on  fire,  and  so  had  to  skirmish  for  a  supper. 

After  Retreat,  Tattoo  and  Taps,  and  swapping  a 
few  stories,  we  crawled  in  our  pup-tent,  rather  tired 
but  otherwise  feeling  first  rate,  and  were  soon  sleeping 
as  sound  as  a  man  could  sleep  in  any  bed.  The 
officers  have  roomy  wall-tents  and  folding  cots  to 
help  them  worry  though  the  hardships,  but  the 
common  herd  who  have  all  the  work  to  do,  take  up 
with  the  worst  there  is,  and  our  work  is  increased  by 
so  many  men  being  detailed  to  wait  on  the  officers. 

The  camp  is  soon  very  still,  no  noise  except  that 
made  by  the  horses,  as  they  graze  near  by,  and  the 
hourly  call  of  the  guards  and  pickets,  ending  with, 
"All's  well!" 

Suddenly  the  Fire  Call  is  sounded  by    Chinkey 
Martin,  Trumpeter  of  the  Guard,  and  we  hustle  out 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       63 

of  our  tents.  Fire  out  here,  and  not  a  house  or  any 
other  building  within  eighteen  miles  of  us !  Yes,  it 
was  a  fire,  and  before  we  got  through  with  it,  it 
found  it  was  the  hottest  and  most  stubborn  fire  we 
ever  faced. 

The  prairie  was  on  fire,  and  the  flames  were  com 
ing  our  way  with  the  speed  of  a  tornado.  We  hear 
the  flames  roar  and  crackle,  in  the  distance,  as  they 
flash  our  way,  fed  by  dead  grass  and  dry  sage-brush. 

For  a  moment  the  camp  is  in  confusion,  and  then 
Assembly  is  sounded,  and  every  man  demonstrates 
what  discipline  will  do.  The  men  fall  in  as  coolly  as 
if  they  were  to  parade,  instead  of  attacking  the  most 
dangerous  foe  they  ever  encountered. 

Each  man  was  ordered  to  secure  a  section  of  pup- 
tent,  and  as  soon  as  we  did  so,  the  order  was  given, 
" Right  f award,  four's  right,  double  quick,"  and  for 
ward  we  go  to  meet  the  on-rush  of  flames.  We  did  not 
stop  until  right  at  the  edge  of  the  flames.  Then  we 
whip  the  fire  with  the  sections  of  pup-tents.  Soon  we 
begin  to  fall  back ;  the  heat  is  intense ;  another 
company  rushes  to  our  relief  fighting  the  flames  while 
we  get  a  few  breaths  of  cooler  air,  and  then  come 
to  the  relief  of  this  company.  So  it  goes,  turn  about. 
Meanwhile  the  horses,  as  though  they  realized  that 
there  was  peril  for  them  in  the  prairie  fire,  run  to  the 
camp,  crowd  in  among  the  tents,  and  with  nostrils 
dilated,  stand  and  snort.  Army  horses  are  not  in 
clined  to  stampede.  I  think  that  the  reason  for  this, 
is  because  they  have  horse-sense,  and  in  a  time  of 
peril  turn  for  protection  to  the  men  who  feed  and 
groom  them.  I  have  noticed  that  a  Cavalryman  who 
abuses  or  neglects  his  horse,  is  pretty  sure  to  be 
un-horsed  on  a  march  and  compelled  to  walk. 

After  two  hours  of  hard  work  the  fire  was  put  out 
where  its  onrush  endangered  the  camp,  and  the  tired 
men  returned  to  their  tents,  or  what  was  left  of  them. 


64        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

While  the  men  were  working  at  the  fire,  doing 
their  best  and  getting  results,  Colonel  Otis,  standing 
back  where  the  air  was  breatheable,  shouted: — 

"  Put  that  fire  out ! !  Company  M,  move  to  the 
right!" 

The  Colonel's  orders  were  not  kindly  received.  He 
riled  some  of  the  men,  and  they  retorted  : — 

"  Give  that  calf  more  rope  !" 

"  Somebody  sit  on  the  Bulldozer  !" 

"  I  want  to  go  home  to  my  ma !" 

Col.  Otis  was  so  disliked  by  privates  and  company 
officers,  that,  such  remarks  were  not  unusual.  But 
when  he  did  get  after  a  man,  his  name  was  Dennis. 

The  prairie  fire  that  endangered  the  camp  was 
whipped  out,  the  horses  were  taken  back  to  their 
pasturage  by  details  eppointed  to  look  after  them,  and 
soon  all  was  quiet  again. 

An  hour  later,  and  again  the  Fire  Call!  The  wind 
had  changed,  and  the  prairie  fire,  having  turned  our 
flank,  was  coming  our  way  from  another  direction. 
We  met  the  flames  as  before,  and  soon  beat  them  out 
but  got  no  more  sleep  that  night. 

We  had  met  the  Red  Demon,  in  the  Red  Demon's 
own  country,  and  won  out. 

We  cooked  and  eaten  our  breakfasts,  groDtned  the 
horsand  were  in  the  saddle  at  five  on  the  march 
towards  Fort  Lincoln,  which  we  soon  could  see.  The 
Fort  presented  a  pretty  picture.  The  old  fort  topped 
a  bluff,  the  cavalry  barracks  were  at  the  foot  of  the 
bluff,  with  the  cavalry  camp  with  its  many  white 
tents  near  by  and  many  horses  and  cattle,  in  separate 
herds,  feeding  on  the  open  prairie  not  far  away.  All 
formed  a  picture  that  is  not  ever  seen  east  of  the 
Missouri  river. 

Away  to  the  right  is  seen  the  city  of  Bismarck, 
teeming  with  activity  ;  stretches  of  the  crooked  river 
are  glimpsed  at  intervals. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         65 

It  is  Sunday,  but  Government  orders  do  not  pay 
attention  to  the  Sabbath.  On  we  go,  over  the  undu 
lating  bottom  land,  that  would  make  glad  many  a 
farmer  in  the  East.  No  stones,  no  stumps  or  hard 
heads  to  plow  or  mow  around — a  strip  of  land  from 
two  to  twenty  miles  wide,  and  about  eighty  miles 
long. 

We  arrive  at  our  camping  place,  where  we  join 
other  troops,  at  about  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

Guidons  Out,  is  ordered,  and  soon  another  ward  is 
added  to  the  famous  military  city  on  the  Northwest 
frontier.  We  have  "  A  "  tents  in  this  camp.  They  are 
roomy  and  comfortable. 

The  commissioned  officers  of  our  command  are 
welcomed  by  their  brother  officers  and  entertained 
and  soon  the  care  of  the  entire  camp  is  left  to  the 
non-coms. 

We  spent  two  days  sharpening  sabres,  and  wonder 
what  that  was  for,  for  we  did  not  have  much  faith  in 
our  present  commanders  as  being  eager  to  lead  us  on 
a  charge  against  any  considerable  body  of  hostile 
reds. 

With  drills  and  camp  work  we  pass  away  the  time 
until  April  27th.  That  was  pay-day,  with  muster  and 
inspection — we  had  not  been  paid  in  four  months. 

The  Seventh  Cavalry  is  now  all  together,  twelve 
companies  each  one  hundred  strong,  and  we  make 
quite  a  city.  Out  tents  are  pitched  in  the  form  of  a 
triangle,  with  the  horses  lariated  out  in  the  rear. 

We  are  ordered  to  move.  On  the  morning  of  May 
1st  we  are  packed  up  and  at  the  bank  of  the  river, 
our  company  waiting  its  turn  in  crossing  on  steam 
boats  that  are  there  for  that  purpose. 

We  are  ferried  across  on  the  steamer  Far  West. 
From  5  o'clock  in  the  morning  until  9  at  night,  there 
is  an  almost  unceasing  sound  of  trumpets,  and  com- 


66        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

mands  given  by  officers.  After  crossing  the  river  we 
go  into  camp  on  the  large  open  prairie,  which 
stretches  from  the  river  to  the  city  of  Bismarck, 
nearly  six  miles  distant. 

The  regiment  laid  in  this  camp  one  day.  Many 
visitors  from  Bismarck  came  to  the  camp. 

Entrenching  tools  were  issued,  a  straight  trowel 
concern,  and  we  find  them  very  handy  to  fry  bacon 
on. 

Considerable  excitement  was  created  that  day,  by 
the  first  appearance  of  one  of  the  new  Black  Hills 
stages,  or  gunboats  as  we  call  them.  They  consist  of  a 
very  heavy  and  large  stage  with  a  2-pound  Mountain 
Howitzer  mounted  on  top.  They  also  have  twelve 
Winchester  repeating  rifles  inside,  with  plenty  of 
ammunition  in  little  pockets  near  the  windows,  or 
rather  port-holes. 

These  stages  are  run  form  Bismarck  to  the  Black 
Hills,  and  despite  all  their  arms  and  caution,  are 
very  frequently  held  up,  by  white  as  well  as  red 
devils,  who  rob  the  passengers  and  take  valuables 
generally. 

The  Regimental  band  came  out  from  the  Cavalry 
barracks,  and  we  were  treated  to  some  first-class 
music,  as  they  are  one  of  the  crack  bands  of  the  army. 

You  should  have  heard  the  boys  cheer  when  the 
band  struck  up  General  Custer's  favorite/'Garryowen." 
We  fairly  made  the  land  tremble,  when,  after  a 
few  minutes  rest,  they  played  that  beautiful  and 
stirring  piece,  "Custer's  Last  Charge !"  This  is  what 
should  be  called  a  mechanical  piece,  as  the  imita 
tions  of  gun  fire  is  produced  by  a  machine  which  was 
invented  for  that  purpose,  and  it  is  a  good  one,  too. 
The  air  itself  is  lively,  but  when  they  add  the  sounds 
of  carbines,  rifles  and  trumpets,  you  respond  in  your 
most  hearty  manner. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        67 

How  we  wish  the  brave  and  manly  Custer  was 
with  us.  He  was  a  fighter,  a  kind  commander,  and 
a  gentleman,  in  every  sense  of  the  word.  Custer 
did  not  want  a  detail  at  the  close  of  a  hard  day's 
march,  to  put  up  his  tent  and  wait  on  him.  No,  not 
he.  "Boys  make  yourselves  as  comfortable  as  you  can," 
was  all  he  wanted  at  that  time.  He  would  eat  his 
hard-tack  and  bacon  and  roll  in  his  blanket  under 
the  nearest  tree  or  bush,  and  fall  asleep,  but  it  did 
not  take  much  to  wake  him  up,  and  when  his  eyes 
were  open  he  was  awake  all  over ! 

"  Follow  me,  Boys!"  was  his  order  for  a  charge, 
and  who  would  not  follow  such  a  commander. 

West  Point  did  not  spoil  General  Custer.  He 
was  always  and  ever  an  exemplary  man,  an  ideal 
American,  a  true  Soldier. 

A  few  days  before  General  Custer  started  on  the 
scouting  expediton  that  resulted  in  the  destruction  of 
himself  and  comrades,  he  received  an  order  from  the 
Department  Commander,  General  Terry,  which  said: 

"  It  is  of  course  impossible  to  give  you  any  definite 
instructions  in  regard  to  this  movement ;  and  were  it  not 
impossible  to  do  so,  the  Department  Commander  places 
too  much  confidence  in  your  zeal,  energy,  and  ability  to 
v/ish  to  impress  upon  you  precise  orders,  which  might 
hamper  your  action  when  nearly  in  contact  with  the 
enemy." 


68         SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    SIXTEEN. 

Begin  Active  Campaign — Seventh  Cavalry    Marches  Out 

of  Bismarck  With  General  Sturges  in  Command — 

Strenuous  Times  in  the  Land  of  Hostiles. 

MAY  the  fourth  finds  us  packed  up  and  in  the 
saddle  at  8  o'clock,  and  away  we  go,  across  the  level 
bottom  land,  up  a  low  lying  hill,  and  are  soon  in  the 
city  of  Bismarck,  the  budding  Metropolis  of  the  Far 
West. 

How  the  people  cheered  !  Everybody  was  out  to 
see  us  pass  through.  They  see  many  new  faces  in 
the  Seventh — and  know  that  many  members  of  the 
old  regiment  are  at  rest  in  the  Bad  Lands  of  the 
Yellowstone. 

We  heard  a  spectator  say  to  a  companion,  "  If 
Custer  was  only  here  with  them  !"  And  if  Custer 
had  been,  how  the  people  would  have  cheered  him ! 

First  came  the  field  musicians.  The  band  had 
been  left  behind,  to  furnish  music  for  the  ladies. 

There  were  twenty-five  trumpeters,  each  mounted 
on  a  splendid  black  horse,  the  Chief  Trumpeter  ex- 
cepted;  he  rides  a  large  buckskin. 

We  play  "  The  Girl  I  Left  Behind  Me,"  and  "That 
Little  German  Band." 

Next  comes  General  Sturges,  Regimental  Com 
mander,  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  Otis,  Commander  of 
the  First  Battalion,  and  Major  Merrill,  Commander  of 
the  Second  Battalion. 

Then  follows  the  twelve  companies  of  the  Seventh 
Cavalry,  neary  every  cavalyman  a  veteran,  in  columns 
of  four's,  with  their  company  colors  fluttering  gaily 
in  the  breeze,  and  with  their  sabres  at  a  present. 
Oh,  it  is  a  glorious  sight !  No  circus  parade  ever 
equaled  it.  Cheer  them,  citizens ;  it  is  probably  the 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       69 

last  time  you  will  ever  have  a  chance  !  And  how  they 
do  cheer  !  The  men  salute  and  pass  along,  not  speak 
ing  a  word. 

The  artillery  follows  close  behind  the  men,  their 
Rodman  and  Catling  guns  casting  a  shadow  over  the 
little  mountain  Howitzers,  that  rumble  along  by  their 
sides;  these  little  breech-loaders  are  small  but  will  do 
their  full  share  of  duty  before  they  return.  The  red 
trimmed  unf  orms  of  the  artillerymen  cast  a  strange 
colored  glare  before  your  eyes,  after  looking  at  the 
yellow  of  the  Cavalry  so  long, 

Ah,  do  not  forget  the  wagon  train,  for  on  that 
depends  the  life  of  the  regiment,  horses  and  all  ! 
Here  it  comes  !  See  the  six-mule  teams  strain  on  the 
heavily  loaded  wagons.  Sixty-eight  wagons,  and  all 
loaded  with  hard-tack,  beans,  coffee,  camp  equipage, 
and  oats  and  corn  for  the  horses  and  mules.  And 
then  comes  the  cattle  herd,  that  is  our  meat  on  foot, 
and  it  will  all  be  welcome. 

We  p^ss  out  of  Main  street  and  up  over  the  bluffs, 
and  are  soon  out  of  sight  of  all  civilization. 

All  ride  along  in  silence,  and  many  have  grave 
doubts  of  ever  coming  back.  The  failure  of  the  com 
mand  last  Summer,  with  the  loss  of  so  many  good 
men  on  the  Big  Horn,  make  the  chances  of  returning 
seem  rather  slim. 

After  marching  along  in  this  formation  until  about 
4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  we  halt  and  go  into  camp 
for  the  night. 

Here  we  meet  the  greatest  bothers  that  ever  ap 
pear  in  a  Cavalry  camp — women !  Two  daughters 
and  a  son  of  General  Sturges,  have  been  riding  in  an 
ambulance  all  day.  So  they  are  tired,  and  must  have 
a  wall  tent  put  up  for  their  special  benefit.  A  detail 
is  made  to  do  this  work,  and  another  detail  of  soldiers 


70          SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

to  look  after  the  requirements  of   the    young    ladies 
and  the  lad  out  on  a  frolic. 

This  compels  details  to  delay  the  erection  of  their 
own  shelters,  cooking  their  suppers  and  giving  the 
proper  attention  to  their  horses.  It  was  really  too 
bad  that  the  young  ladies  got  tired,  but  do  you  think 
that  they  thanked  the  soldiers  for  doing  what  they 
could  to  made  them  comfortable,  Oh,  no  !  The  men 
do  the  work  and  the  officers  get  the  thanks. 

What  a  difference  between  the  conduct  of  such 
camp  followers,  and  the  wife  of  Gen.  Custer,  who 
would  ride  all  day  beside  the  General,  when  on  a 
march.  And  when  it  was  time  to  camp  for  the  night, 
she  would  dismount,  and  care  for  her  horse — she 
never  wanted  a  special  detail.  She  was  a  Cavalry 
woman. 

The  headquarters  ladies  and  the  lad  left  us  next 
morning,  in  one  of  the  ambulances  under  an  escort, 
LO  return  to  Fort  A.  Lirmlri,  with  nothing  to  do  all 
Summer  but  enjoy  themselves.  They  will  have  an 
army  band  to  provide  music  for  numerous  society 
functions  and  young  officers  for  dancing  partners. 

We  enjoyed  a  lively  thunderstorm  during  the 
afternoon,  and  got  a  thorough  soaking.  No  dry  beds 
for  the  men  that  night. 

We  have  no  change  of  clothing  now,  so  will  have 
to  get  dry  as  best  we  can,  and  the  best  way  is  to  roll 
up  in  your  saddle  blanket  and  sweat  it  out,  all  the 
time  getting  full  benefit  of  the  aroma  that  arises  from 
the  sweat  from  your  horse's  sides  and  back,  as  it 
creeps  up  out  of  the  blanket. 

The  horses  are  tied  to  the  line  that  is  stretched 
between  the  companies,  each  given  a  quart  of  oats, 
groomed— we  carry  our  currycombs  and  brushes 
with  us— and  then  are  lariated  out  so  that  they 
may  pick  all  the  feed  possible  till  morning,  men  being 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        71 

detailed  to  watch  them  the  whole  night  long,  by  turns, 
otherwise  a  great  many  of  them  would  be  lost  by 
getting  tangled  up  in  their  lariats.  Besides  the  lariats 
a  rope  about  fifty  feet  long  tied  in  the  ring  on  the 
halter,  the  other  end  fastened  in  a  swivel-ring  on  the 
end  of  a  picket  pin ;  the  horses  are  hoppled  with  a 
strap  reaching  from  a  front  to  a  hind  foot,  and  buck 
led  around  the  legs  near  the  hoofs.  Thus  hoppled 
horses  cannot  travel  as  fast  as  a  man  can  run,  and  are 
easily  caught  when  they  make  a  break. 

Finally  the  usual  routine  of  Retreat,  Tattoo  and 
Taps,  having  been  gone  through  with,  we  lie  down 
to  sleep,  but  do  we  sleep  ?  Not  much  !  At  about  ten 
o'clock  at  night  it  begins  to  rain  and  blow,  and  we 
have  another  splendid  thunder  shower  !  Tents  are 
blow  down  and  go  flying  in  every  disection,  and  things 
are  mixed  up  in  great  shape.  We  take  it  all  in  good 
part,  only  the  men  that  are  sent  to  pitch  the  officers 
tents,  do  any  growling.  We  catch  a  few  winks  of 
sleep  and  are  glad  that  it  is  no  worse. 


72        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    SEVENTEEN. 

Fort  Stevenson  and  Berthol  Indian   Agency — In  a  Rough 

Country — Have  Fishing   Contest — Heavy  Rains  Are 

Active — Sitting    Bull    Seeking    for    Trouble. 

ON  WE  GO,  day  after  day.  May  7th  we  march 
through  Fort  Stevenson.  We  are  halted  at  the  post 
long  enough  for  the  officers  to  get  a  drink.  Then  on 
we  march.  Oh,  what  a  difference  will  be  seen  in  the 
officers  after  they  have  one  drink  to  cut  the  ragged 
edges  out  of  their  throats. 

Fort  Stevenson  is  a  small,  three-company  post,  on 
the  east  bank  of  the  Missouri  river,  and  is  garrisoned 
by  three  companies  of  the  Fifth  Infantry.  They  have 
about  the  same  duties  to  do  that  we  did  when  we 
were  in  Winter  quarters,  but  no  horses  to  care  for. 
Many  of  them  said  they  wished  they  were  where  they 
would  not  be  abused  so  much,  but  we  told  them  they 
would  only  find  that  place  out  of  the  army.  They 
said  it  was  just  like  doing  chores  at  a  poor  house  for 
your  board  and  clothes,  They  looked  as  though  they 
lived  petty  well,  anyway,  and  I  guess  they  found 
plenty  of  time  to  make  love  to  the  squaws,  as  there 
were  many  of  these  creatures  around  there. 

We  passed  near  Berthol  Indian  Agency,  and 
camped  about  one  mile  from  It.  Now  we  see  the 
Indians  for  certain,  there  being  about  five  hundred 
of  the  Reeve-Sioux  at  Berthol. 

Peaceable  ?  Yes,  if  you  are  a  big  crowd  and  well 
armed.  A  great  many  of  these  reds  came  to  our  camp 
with  potatoes,  onions,  moccasins  and  bead-work  of 
different  kinds,  which  they  wanted  to  sell.  They 
were  not  treated  very  well  by  the  men  and  no 
wonder,  as  they  are  a  dirty,  thieving  lot,  and  were 
the  worst  beggars  I  ever  was. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         73 

They  would  approach  you,  and  holding  out  a  hand 
that  would  make  a  blacksmith  blush,  would  say  in 
their  gutteral  tones: 

"How!  Sar-koo-mar-koo?"  This  means,  how  do 
you  do,  what  are  you  going  to  give  me  ?  I  bought  a 
pair  of  buckskin  leggins  and  moccasins  of  them,  and 
they  came  in  good  after  my  boots  had  given  out,  as 
there  are  no  worse  boots  made  then  those  that  are 
issued  to  the  Cavalry.  They  also  had  milk  to  sell, 
and  our  mess  feasted  on  Mountain  Stew,  potatoes 
and  bacon,  and  were  happy.  They  do  not  raise  the 
potatoes  for  their  own  use,  but  sell  them  to  the 
different  wagon  trains  almost  constantly  going  to  and 
from  the  river  posts  above ;  and  also  to  the  wheel- 
borrow  steamboats  that  ply  their  trade  on  the  upper 
Missouri  and  Yellowstone  rivers. 

May  10th  my  company  was  rear  guard,  and  we 
had  a  picnic  !  We  found  three  of  the  7th  Cavalry 
men  on  the  roadside,  where  they  had  fallen  from 
their  horses,  and  were  too  full  to  get  back  on  their 
horses.  They  had  got  petty  full  at  the  Agency,  and 
with  a  bottle  in  their  pockets,  had  tried  to  keep  up 
their  spirits  and  the  march  at  the  same  time,  but  had 
made  a  failure  of  it.  When  they  had  fallen  off  their 
horses,  the  Captains  had,  with  lack  of  humanity, 
ordered  all  the  Government  property  taken  from 
these  men,  and  left  them  to  get  into  camp  as  best  they 
could.  We  placed  them  in  one  of  the  wagons,  and 
that  is  how  they  came  to  be  able  to  answer  to  their 
namef  at  roll-call  that  night,  and  were  saved  from 
being  reported  as  deserters.  Oh,  no,  you  cannot  get 
any  intoxicating  liquors  at  the  Indian  Agency — unless 
you  call  for  it  and  have  the  money  to  pay  for  it,  at 
therate  of  one  dollar  for  a  half -pint. 

This  is  a  very  rough  section  of  the  country, 
being  mostly  bluffs  and  bad-lands.  The  prairie  fires 
has  burned  the  grass  from  nearly  all  the  bottoms, 


74        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

and  it  was  quite  difficult  to  find  a  good  place  for  our 
horses  to  graze  at  night.  Some  of  the  horses  already 
begin  to  show  the  effects  of  the  trips,  and  more  than 
one  cavalryman  will  soon  have  to  foot  it  along  with 
the  wagon  train,  as  we  take  no  extra  horses  along  for 
the  men.  Each  officer  has  two  for  his  own  use,  and 
it  does  not  seem  to  make  much  difference  to  them 
whether  the  men  have  to  walk  or  not. 

The  prairies  are  nearly  covered  with  flowers,  of 
many  kinds,  some  of  them  being  equal  to  a  great 
many  hot-house  plants  and  as  for  variety  there  seems 
to  be  no  end. 

Game,  such  as  antelope,  jack-rabbits,  wild  ducks, 
prairie  chickens,  gophers,  rattlesnakes,  and  buffalo- 
chips,  is  quite  plentiful.  We  march  from  fifteen  to 
twenty-five  miles  a  day,  not  being  able  to  go  any 
faster  on  account  of  the  wagon  train. 

On  the  twelfth  we  had  quite  a  big  scare.  A  scout 
carne  in  and  reported  that  Sitting  Bull  had  crossed 
the  river  at  Fort  Peck,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  above  our  camp,  and  had  murdered  the  whole 
garrison,  (two  companies  of  Infantry),  and  either  car 
ried  off  or  burned  all  the  government  property  at  that 
place.  If  this  is  true  the  prospects  for  clasping  hands 
across  the  bloody  chasm  are  yery  good  indeed,  and 
when  it  come  time  to  shake,  (which  we  doubt  with 
the  present  men  in  command),  Sitting  Bull  will  find 
that  the  Custer  Avengers  are  right  on  top  of  the  heap- 
We  were  named  the  Custer  Avengers,  while  in  camp 
near  Bismarck,  and  hope  to  be  able  to  live  up  to  the 
name. 

We  now  have  an  extra  picket  detail  and  guard 
mount,  to  protect  againt  a  surprise  by  the  Indians, 
or  red  devils,  as  they  are  commonly  called  by  the 
men. 


FIGHTING     INDIANS         75 

I  think  that  if  the  Government  would  hire  a  few 
farmers  to  go  along  with  the  command,  we  would 
not  have  to  wait  so  much  for  the  wagon  train,  as  then 
the  farmers  would  go  to  work  and  fix  the  roads  in 
less  time  then  it  take  the  engineer  corps,  and  it 
would  give  West  Pointers  plenty  of  time  to  stand 
and  draw  plans  while  the  command  crossed  the  bad 
places  and  pushed  ahead.  I  shall  recommend  this 
plan  in  my  next  report  to  the  Government  ! 

Sunday,  May  13. — Broke  camp  at  5  o'clock.  After 
marching  18  miles  we  camp.  We  now  find  plenty  of 
fish,  and  as  soon  as  the  carnp  duties  are  done,  we 
grab  a  hunk  of  fat  bacon  for  bait  and  go  fishing.  Cat- 
fishes  and  suckers  take  to  bacon  ieadily,  and  a  kind  of 
chub  was  also  our  reward.  We  cook  and  eat  a  fish 
supper. 

Another  generous  shower  visits  us  during  the 
night.  Let  them  come.  We  do  not  not  catch  cold. 

We  marched  the  14th  and  15th  of  May  in  about  the 
same  routine.  The  only  thing  out  of  the  usual  course 
that  happened,  was  that  while  stepping  out  of  an  am 
bulance  one  of  the  hospital  stewards  slipped  and  fellr 
breaking  a  leg  between  the  ankle  and  knee.  The  bone 
stuck  out  through  the  flesh  and  skin  several  inches. 
This  man  had  been  in  three  Indian  battles,  and  did 
not  get  even  a  scratch,  and  when  this  accident  took 
place  he  declared,  "  It  was  darn  mean  to  use  a  fellow 
in  this  way." 

Broke  camp  May  16th  at  7  A.  M.  Marched  18 
miles  and  camped  on  the  banks  of  Little  Muddy 
River.  This  is  a  small  creek-like  stream,  and  gets  its 
name  from  the  large  amount  of  mud  and  small  quan 
tity  of  water  it  contains.  The  only  way  to  get  a 
drink,  here,  is  to  take  a  mouthful  of  the  mixture,  and 
squeeze  the  mud  out  in  your  mouth,  and  swallow  the 
water. 


76        SEVENTH  CAV  ALRY 

Two  men  were  sunstruck  to  day.  The  heat  was 
terrible. 

We  were  in  the  saddle  bright  and  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  17th,  In  three  hours  we  reach  Fort 
Buford,  Montana  Territory.  This  is  a  large  post, 
situated  nearly  opposite  the  point  where  the  Yellow 
stone  river  enters  the  Missouri.  It  is  garrisoned  by 
five  Infantry  Companies  and  countless  mosquitoes  ! 

Our  regiment  was  halted  here  long  enough  for  the 
officers  to  get  refreshments,  when  we  moved  to  the 
bank  of  the  river,  and  at  3  o'clock  camped  on  a  muddy 
bottom.  No  grass  to  speak  of,  considerable  low 
brush,  and  too  many  prairie  dogs  holes  and  rattle 
snakes  for  comfort. 

Soon  there  was  a  furious  thunder  storm,  with 
continous  flashes  of  lightning,  while  the  water  poured 
down.  But  we  did  not  care  much,  it  was  so  pleasant 
to  have  it  rain  so  we  could  not  drill ! 

My  bunkieand  I  bought  some,  eggs — so  we  thought 
— from  the  steamboat  Far  West,  and  the  eggs  proved 
to  be  too  far  west;  that  is  the  chicks  had  been  picked 
too  soon.  So  we  had  no  eggs  for  breakfast,  but  we 
did  not  care  much,  as  they  only  cost  us  fifty  cents  a 
dozen.  We  compounded  a  fairly  appetizing  relish  of 
pulverized  hard-tack,  bacon  and  raisins,  boiled  in 
condensed  milk. 

The  rumor  that  Mr  Sitting  Bull  has  captured 
Fort  Peck  has  no  foundation.  However,  he  is  report 
ed  to  be  about  one  hundred  miles  above  this  placer 
waiting  for  us.  His  party  conisits  of  thirteen 
hundred  well  armed  warriors. 

Our  men  are  all  in  good  spirits,  and  the  sutler  at 
Fort  Buford  is  having  a  big  trade.  The  demand  for 
rattlesnake  poison  is  brisk. 

During  the  evening  a  party  of  Infantryman 
came  down  from  Fort  Buford,  and  there  was 
a  general  exchange  of  stories.  We  were  inclined  to 
believe  that  our  visitors  stretched  their  stories  a  little 
too  much,  but  we  did  not  say  so. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          77 


CHAPTER    EIGHTEEN. 

Our  Captain  Makes  a  Social   Call— His  Orderly  Left  Out 

in  Rain — Double- Acting  Frying  Pans — General  Miles 

Captures  Reds — Our  Force  Ordered  to  Hurry. 

MAY  17th. — This  morning  it  rained  and  the  wind 
was  so  strong  that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  keep  a 
tent  up.  So  we  stood  around  in  the  rain,  and  after 
vain  attempts  to  keep  our  fires  going,  we  just  stood 
and  shivered,  while  waiting  for  the  weather  to 
ease  up. 

I  had  the  pleasure  of  going  to  the  Fort  with  my 
Captain,  as  his  Orderly.  When  we  arrived  there,  I 
had  the  exquisite  pleasure  of  standing  out  in  the 
driving  rain  and  serving  as  a  "  hitching  post,"  getting 
wet  through  and  through,  with  "  Old  Sugar  "  trying 
every  few  moments  to  nip  an  ear  offfas  an  intimation 
that  it  was  time  to  go.  But  the  Captain  staid  on  and 
on ;  he  had  a  good  time.  The  only  difference  between 
us  was,  that  I  did  no  enjoy  myself  and  did  get  wet  on 
the  outside,  while  the  Captain  did  enjoy  himself  and 
did  not  get  wet  on  the  outside ;  but  I  will  bet  what 
little  soul  I  have  left,  that  in  the  morning  my  head 
will  feel  better  than  his  does,  and  it  will  not  be  neces 
sary  to  have  my  hat  stretched  over  the  top  of  a  hard 
tack  box,  so  I  can  get  it  on. 

The  Second  Battalion  crossed  the  river  this  after 
noon,  to  get  out  of  the  mud,  and  went  into  camp  on 
the  side  of  a  ridge  about  half  a  mile  from  the 
Yellowstone,  a  short  distance  from  the  Missouri.  We 
had  packed  our  saddles,  expecting  to  move,  but  must 
remain  in  the  mud  another  night. 

May  20th. — Another  nice  rainy  night  and  the 
officers  cross  ;  their  "A"  tents  were  blown  during  the 
night  and  men  had  to  turn  out  and  fix  them.  The 
wood  is  green  and  covered  with  ice — we  cannot  make 


78        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


It  burn.  We  are  to  remain  in  this  camp  for  the  day ; 
as  it  is  so  muddy  that  the  teams  cannot  move  the 
wagons.  What  a  fine  time  this  would  be  for  an 
Indian  surprise — half  the  command  on  each  side  of 
river. 

So  passes  another  dreary  any  and  night. 

May  21st. — It  is  till  raining.  Anything  dropped 
is  pretty  sure  to  be  lost.  It  is  astonishing  how  deep 
the  mud  can  get  and  yet  hold  bottom.  We  waded 
through  mud  to  the  river,  and  had  to  back  most  of 
the  rations  and  ammunition,  as  the  mud  was  so  deep 
that  six  mules  haul  a  wagon  that  is  only  partly 
loaded.  But  as  work  is  the  principal  part  of  a  sol 
dier's  job,  we  do  not  mind  it.  After  the  officers'  cots, 
tents,  miscellaneous  belongings  and  heavy  chests  are 
stowed  on  the  boat,  we  lead  our  horses  aboard  and 
soon  cross  the  stream.  We  camp  near  the  Second 
Battalion,  on  high  ground,  but  the  rain  continues. 

May  22d. — Still  in  camp.     Mud  begins  to  show  up. 

By  the  way,  those  combination  frying-pans  and 
trench-spades  that  Uncle  Sam  so  kindly  furnished  us, 
free  of  cost,  are  very  handy.  You  place  the  handle 
out  straight  and  remove  the  cover,  and  then  have  a 
nice  little  plate  to  lay  your  tark  and  bacon  on,  while 
the  part  with  the  handle  on  makes  a  frying-pan  that 
is  large  enough  for  all  ordinary  purposes.  When  you 
have  finished  your  meal,  just  place  any  food  you  have 
left  in  the  frying-pan  part  of  the  device,  place  the  tin 
plate  cover  in  position  on  top  of  it,  and  then  bend 
the  handle  over  the  top  of  the  plate  and  fasten  in  the 
catch.  The  bottom  of  the  frying-pan  part  is  made 
oval,  shaped  so  it  will  not  sit  down. 

We  are  now  "  at  home  "  wherever  night  overtakes 
us,  happy  is  clams.  We  go  over  a  mile  from  camp 
to  get  wood.  Such  is  our  life  on  the  Upper  Missuri. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         79 


General  Call  was  sounded  bright  and  early,  on  the 
morning  of  May  23d,  by  Chief  Trumpeter  Hardy.  At 
6:30  we  are  once  more  in  the  saddle,  going  on  our 
way  rejoicing.  I  say  rejoicing,  because  it  has  stopped 
raining,  and  being  up  out  of  the  mud  there  is  a  fair 
opportunity  for  our  clothes  to  dry. 

Antelope  are  seen  on  all  sides.  No  hunting  is 
permitted,  except  by  company  details. 

An  Indian  scout  came  in  to-day  and  reported  that 
General  Miles  has  captured  about  200  more  Indians, 
nearly  all  of  them  belonging  to  the  Cheyenne-Sioux 
tribe.  These  he  said  were  mostly  old  men,  squaws 
and  children,  who  let  themselves  be  captured  that 
they  may  be  fed  by  the  Government  while  their  war 
riors  are  on  the  war-path.  Many  young  braves, 
anxious  to  get  a  standing  among  their  people  as  real 
warriors,  are  stealing  away  from  reservations  and 
joining  Sitting  Bull.  They  go  armed  with  rifles  and 
ammunition,  purchased  of  white  traders. 

It  begins  to  look  as  though  these  Indian  scouts 
come  in  and  report  the  first  thing  they  think  of,  in 
order  to  make  the  Commanding  Officer  belief  that 
they  are  doing  good  work. 

General  Miles  is  waiting  for  our  Regiment  to  join 
his  command,  which  our  men  are  anxious  to  do.  He 
is  a  success  as  an  Indian  Fighter. .  We  are  eager  to 
get  on  the  trail  of  Sitting  Bull,  and  if  we  can  force 
him  to  give  battle,  we  will  share  the  fate  of  Custer 
and  his  men,  or  capture  the  greatest  War  Chief  that 
ever  "  dug  up  the  hatchet." 

We  are  camped  to-night  on  the  bank  of  the  Yel- 
owstone,  about  twenty-five  miles  from  Fort  Buford. 
The  prairie  grass  is  about  six  inches  high  and  our 
horses  enjoy  it  hugely.  We  now  have  a  change  of 
diet ;  hard-tack,  bacon  and  coffee  for  breakfast ;  raw 
bacon  and  tack  for  dinner ;  fried  bacon  and  hard  bread 
for  supper.  If  our  hunters  have  good  luck,  which 


80  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

they  always  do  when  Neeley  is  out,  we  feast  on 
antelope  meat.  It  is  very  tender  and  tastes  similar 
to  pork  tenderloin  but  is  a  great  deal  better.  The 
antelope  is  a  species  of  small  deer  of  a  gray -brown 
color.  They  have  a  patch  of  white  on  their  rumps 
which  they  spread  out  when  they  run  from  you,  and 
this  makes  them  a  difficult  mark.  Their  hair  is 
brittle. 

We  are  told  that  we  will  strike  buffalo  in  a  day  or 
two,  if  the  Indians  do  not  drive  them  north.  We  hope 
to  live  high  on  Indian  "  beef  steak." 

Delayed  during  the  day  by  wagons  getting  stuck 
in  the  mud,  but  nevertheless  marched  25  miles. 

May  24.— In  the  saddle  at  an  early  hour.  Rained 
most  of  the  night. 

A  Lieutenant  and  three  men  arrived  from  the 
camp  of  General  Miles,  on  Tongue  river.  They 
brought  a  despatch  from  General  Miles  to  General 
Sturges,  to  hasten  his  advance,  as  the  Indians  were 
increasing  their  activites.  Orders  were  at  once  given 
for  the  command  to  draw  extra  rations  from  our 
supply  boat,  the  Far  West,  and  then  push  ahead  and 
join  General  Miles,  making  the  118  miles  in  four  days; 
but  our  boys  think  this  hustle  will  soon  lose  its  grip, 
for  our  commanding  officer  does  not  seem  to  care  to 
get  in  contact  with  the  hostiles.  But  perhaps  he  is 
working  out  a  plan  of  campaign  that  he  keeps  from 
his  command. 

General  Sturges  is  an  older  officer  than  General 
Miles,  and  that  may  account  for  "  the  milk  in  the 
cocoanut." 

It  is  enough  to  provoke  a  Deacon  to  see  so  much 
game  on  every  hand,  and  not  be  allowed  to  take  a 
shot  at  it.  We  have  strict  orders  not  to  fire  a  gun 
without  orders  from  the  Commanding  Officer.  The 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          81 


scouts  keep  his  mess  supplied  with  an  abundance  of 
game. 

We  march  twenty-one  and  one-half  miles  and  go 
into  camp  for  the  night.  The  distances  marched  are 
measured  by  a  meter  connected  with  a  wheel  on  an 
ambulance. 

May  25th. — Were  in  the  saddle  and  on  our  way 
early,  but  were  held  up  again  and  again  by  the  wagon 
train.  The  pioneers  have  hard  work  opening  a  way 
so  the  wagons  could  get  along  at  all.  We  traveled 
through  a  bottom  of  sage  brush  and  prickly  pears, 
and  again  camped  on  the  Yellowstone. 

The  steamer  Benton  passed  down  the  river  to-day 
on  her  return  trip  from  Post  Number  Two,  on  the 
Big  Horn  river.  The  steamer  Far  West  keeps  along 
with  us,  and  is  having  a  slow  time  of  it. 

"Wash-ta-Cha-Ah,"  or  Good  Wood,  a  scout,  to-day 
gave  me  a  fine  quarter  of  antelope. 

Marched  twenty-five  and  one-fourth  miles. 

May  26th.— After  a  soaking  rain  in  the  morning 
we  are  off,  and  at  night  camp  on  the  bank  of  Glen  dive 
Creek.  Another  rumor  brouget  in  by  one  of  our 
scouts,  is  to  the  effect  that  500  Indians  have  left 
Standing  Rock  Indian  Agency  and  are  on  their  way 
to  join  the  hostiles  north  of  us. 

Nineteen  miles  forward  to-day.  There  is  a  supply 
camp  here  at  Glendive,  guarded  by  two  companies  of 
Infantry.  This  is  one  of  the  prettiest  spots  I  have 
yet  seen,  and  on  the  side  of  one  of  the  bluffs,  glisten 
ing  in  the  sun,  is  a  large  mass  of  what  I  am  told  is 
mica,  of  good  quality. 

Day  after  day  we  march  over  wild  country,  where 
roaming  bands  of  hostiles  w^tch  our  movements  but 
keep  beyond  reach.  They  have  keen  judgment  as  to 
the  distance  our  rifles  will  carry. 


82        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 

CHAPTER    NINETEEN. 

Hostile  Spies  Numerous  and  Bold — Race   With   a   Young 

Antelope — Elks  Appear — General  Miles  Requests  Our 

Commander  to  Speed  Up — Indians  Capture  Mail. 

SUNDAY,  but  only  in  name.  There  was  an  alarm 
last  night,  given  by  the  mounted  pickets.  We  turned 
out  in  short  order,  and  were  all  ready  for  the  fun  to 
begin,  when  we  found  that  a  small  party  of  reds  had 
tried  to  creep  up  on  a  picket,  and  on  being  discover 
ed  had  fired  their  guns  and  taken  to  the  bluffs. 

No  use  to  try  to  capture  them.  They  know  every 
rod  of  these  Bad-Lands,  and  easily  get  away. 

Broke  camp  early  in  the  morning  and  made  a  still 
march.  Our  route  led  us  through  Bad-Lands  over 
bluffs,  across  alkali  bottoms  where  the  dust  from  the 
grass  made  breathing  a  torture  and  caused  eyes  to 
smart  and  swell ;  but  through  it  we  must  go.  The 
horses  are  thirsty  and  it  is  difficult  to  keep  them  from 
drinking  the  alkali  water.  This  water  is  extremely 
repulsive,  in  taste  and  smell.  It  stands  in  small  ponds 
and  the  salty  vapors  that  rise  settle  on  the  grass 
and  sage  bush  all  about,  forming  a  coating  similar  to 
frost.  It  gives  great  trouble  to  Indians  and  whites. 
M  arched  29  miles  and  camped  on  Sunday  Creek. 

May  28th.  We  start  early  on  our  seemingly  end 
less  march.  There  was  an  interesting  incident,  when 
a  young  antelope  appeared  along  the  line  of  march, 
and  ran  ahead  and  some  of  the  officers  gave  chase. 
Though  only  about  four  months  old  it  gave  the  horses 
a  lively  race  for  over  a  mile,  when  an  officer  rode  up 
beside  it  and  bending  over  grasped  it  by  the  back  and 
lifted  it  aboard  his  saddle.  After  giving  the  little 
fellow  a  good  ride,  it  was  placed  on  the  ground,  and 
followed  after  for  some  distance,  when  it  turned 
aside. 


FIGHTING     INDIANS         83 

We  saw  three  large  elk  to-day,  but  the  Captain 
could  not  get  near  enough  for  a  shot.  They  were  big 
fellows  and  had  amazingly  large  spreads  of  antlers. 

We  also  caught  sight  of  a  small  herd  of  buffalo. 
After  a  hard  but  short  run  our  detail  succeeded  in 
bringing  one  of  them  to  the  ground.  We  had  "Indian 
beef  "  for  supper. 

Another  despatch  came  in  from  General  Miles  for 
our  command  to  hurry  up.  We  would  be  compelled 
to  make  long  detours  to  accommodate  our  wagons 
but  by  putting  in  more  hours  could  gain  one  day  in 
three.  We  are  only  fifty  miles  from  Tongue  River 
Cantonment,  General  Miles's  headquarters,  and  one 
forced  march  would  land  us  there  in  a  day  ;  but  our 
Commander  does  not  seem  inclined  to  "hurry  up !"  It 
is  common  talk  among  the  men,  that  General  Sturges 
is  cranky  because  he  is  under  orders  to  report  with 
his  command  to  General  Miles,  a  younger  officer. 

A  man  of  Troop  E  was  sun-struck  to-day.  He  was 
brought  in  in  the  ambulance. 

Passed  the  United  States  Mail  this  afternoon.  It 
was  on  the  way  to  Fort  Buford.  The  mail  train  con 
sisted  of  a  white  man,  with  long  hair,  well  armed, 
and  two  ponies ;  he  rode  one  and  the  other  carried 
the  mail  on  a  pack-saddle.  Think  of  this  for  bravery  ! 
For  sixty  dollars  per  month  this  man  travels  alone  in 
a  hostile  country  with  the  valuable  mail.  These  mail 
carriers  are  the  best  scouts  in  the  country  and  hardly 
ever  fail  to  deliver  their  mail  safely  and  promptly. 
Once  in  a  while  a  mail  carrier  is  killed  and  scalped 
by  reds,  who  take  all  he  has,  even  his  clothes. 

Thirty-five  Indian  warriors  were  seen  to-day  ahead - 
of  the  command  They  were  spies  from  Sitting  Bull's 
camp,  and  watched  us  closely,  and  then  went  to  a 
distant  bluff  and  started  signal  fires,  to  let  their  head 
quarters  know  our  location,  our  strength,  and  the 
direction  in  which  we  were  moving.  These  signal 


84        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

fires  can  be  seen  a  great  distance,  and  as  manipulated 
by  the  Indians  are  an  efficient  means  of  com 
munication 

Struck  a  good  camping  place  at  5  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  and  up  went  our  tents  for  the  night.  Our 
march  was  18  1-2  miles,  to  get  10.  Wood  and  alkali 
water  abundant. 

May  29th. — To-day  General  Sturges  received  word 
from  General  Miles,  to  the  effect  that  Sturges  is  to 
wait  for  Miles,  who  will  join  him  in  a  day.  We  then 
expect  to  take  pack  mules  and  push  ahead,  with  fair 
prospects  of  getting  in  contact  with  hostiles. 

Camped  in  a  large  bottom,  surrounded  by  high 
bluffs,  with  plenty  of  wood  and  good  water,  and  grass 
abundant.  Our  horses  are  in  bad  shape.  They  require 
plenty  of  good  feed  and  potable  water.  A  mount 
has  a  heavy  load  to  carry—  as  it  is  all  a  man  can  do  to 
throw  the  packed  saddle  on  the  horse's  hack,  and  to 
this  burden  is  added  the  weight  of  a  man. 

The  following  morning  my  company  was  ordered 
out  on  a  scout.  We  took  one  day's  rations,  and  were 
soon  in  the  saddle,  with  rain  falling  quite  hard.  We 
went  straight  away  some  twenty-five  miles,  and  then 
took  a  circle  to  the  left  and  returned  to  camp,  not 
having  seen  a  hostile  that  day.  Our  route  was 
through  some  of  the  worst  country  I  ever  saw  ;  over 
bottoms  covered  with  prickly  pears,  cactus  and  sage  ; 
through  bad-lands ;  over  and  along  bluffs  where  it 
seemed  that  a  horse  could  not  keep  on  its  feet,  but 
at  any  moment  would  tumble  to  the  gullies  below  ; 
along  steep  ridges  that  looked  as  though  the 
earth  while  in  a  molten  state  had  boiled  over.  We 
passed  through  places  where  masses  of  volcanic 
formation  suggested  the  wreckage  of  large  stone 
buildings,  torn  to  pieces,  the  ruins  of  long  ages  gone. 
Many  of  the  blocks  were  as  square  as  though  chisel- 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        85 

ed  out,  and  not  a  few  of  them  lay  in  about  the  same 
shapes  that  sticks  of  a  woodpile  would,  if  piled  up 
straight  and  nice,  and  then  tipped  over. 

Our  Indian  scout,  "  John- Climb-the-B  luff"  as  we 
call  him,  was  right  at  home  here.  He  would  hurry 
and  climb  to  the  top  of  a  cliff,  and  if  the  route  was 
one  we  could  get  throug  he  would  signal  for  us  to 
come  on ;  otherwise  he  would  wave  for  us  to  stop 
while  he  searched  for  an  opening,  and  when  he  found 
one  would  beckon  us  on.  It  was  a  day  of  most  inter 
esting  adventure. 

Generally  speaking,  this  is  a  bad  country.  It  is 
a  proper  place  for  Indians.  Here  the  reds  have  game 
in  abundance.  But  it  has  minerals,  restricted  farming 
and  range  possibilites,  and  other  possibilites  that  lure 
the  whites.  No  decent  white  man  would  be  content 
to  live  the  life  of  a  savage.  A  white  who  is  a  hunter, 
is  good  for  nothing  else.  But,  as  things  have  gone 
since  the  frontier  line  began  its  westward  sweep  trom 
the  Atlantic  seaboard,  three  centuries  ago,  whites  will 
continue  their  drive,  until  the  last  frontier  has  been 
wiped  out.  An  out  here  in  the  Bad-Lands  the 
desperate  aborigines  are  making  their  final  stand ! 
***** 

Here's  a  Wild  West  Classic,  of  unknown  origin, 
that  is  handed  about  the  camp,  keenly  enjoyed  by  the 
men,  who  are  mailing  copies  "  to  the  home  folks :" — 

DAKOTA'S     WAIL. 


To  the  west  of  Minnesota, 

And  among  the  treacherous  Sioux, 
There  you  will  find  Dakota, 

Where  the  skies  are  never  blue ! 
So,  stranger,  come  and  find  a  home — 

If  bad  fortune  you'd  pursue — 
In  this  glorious  land,  of  blizzards  grand, 

Where  they  fasten   clothes  on  with  glue! 


86          SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


It  is  not  a  mazy  woodland 

Where  the  alligator  crawls, 
But  some  level  and  more  Bad  Land, 

With  poor  streams  and  waterfalls, 
Where  Uncle  Samuel  gives  a  farm 

To  every  one  that  calls — 
A  farm  of  land,  great  big  Bad  Land, 

Where  the  water  always  falls ! 

Upon  the  plains  the  buffalo 

No  longer  can    be  found, 
And  in  the  streams  thin  fishes  grow 

That  scarcely  weigh  a  pound ; 
From  mountains  of  snow  rivers  flow, 

That  in  the  Springtime  rile  ; 
And  impelled  by  steam,  boats  ply  the  stream, 

For  fifty  cents  per   mile. 

Here  nature  plies  her  fingers 

To  portray  her  darkest  page  ; 
Here  no  happy  boyhood  lingers, 

The  lads  are  bent  with  age  ! 
Here  nature  sends  her  fiercest  winds, 

And  with  sickness  you  engage  ; 
A  land  of  stealth,  there  is  no  wealth — 

Here  poverty  is  all  the  rage ! 

In  Dakota  there  are  mountains 

Up  near  Montana's  line, 
Where  poor  water  springs  in  fountains, 

And  hills  will  not  grow  pine. 
And,  Oh  !  'tis  here  the  pioneer 

His  pouch  with  no  grub  fills — 
Black,  stern  and  bold,  where  the  rich  are  sold, 

Is  this  land  of  Black  Hills! 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         87 

CHAPTER    TWENTY. 

Food  Supply  Short — Uncle  Sam  Plays  Hide  and  Seek  With 

Sitting  Bull— Urgent  Demands  for  Tobacco— The 

Trumpeters  Tune  Up — A  Birthday  Party. 

MAY  31st. — Very  rainy  and  blustering  in  the  early 
morning,  followed  by  clearing,  and  then  a  light  fall  of 
snow,  and  then  sunshine.  Had  to  skirmish  for  fuel ; 
the  supply  was  scant.  But  little  stir  in  camp  all  day. 
Men  laid  around  rolled  up  in  blankets  to  keep  warm. 

June  1st. — Still  waiting  for  General  Miles.  We 
are  to  move  to  a  better  camping  place,  to  get 
wood  and  water  and  to  give  the  horses  better  grazing. 

We  are  now  short  of  rations,  but  expect  a  supply 
to-day.  The  teams  have  been  gone  two  days,  and  as 
they  did  not  have  far  to  go,  there  is  uneasiness  on 
their  account.  If  they  or  stuck  in  the  mud,  or  have 
been  captured  by  Indians,  we  will  become  desperate. 
Two  of  our  non-coms  were  placed  under  arrest  to-day 
for  going  on  a  hunt  for  something  to  eat.  They  were 
released  and  returned  to  duty  a  few  hours  later.  Dis 
cipline  must  be  maintained  !  With  game  so  abundant 
and  near  by,  it  is  a  shame  that  hunting  details  are 
not  sent  out.  The  men  plan  to  help  themselves,  if 
the  food  shortage  is  not  soon  relieved.  That  would 
be  a  serious  reflection  on  our  commanding  officer. 

Company  M  went  out  to-day  on  another  scout. 
We  got  a  thorough  soaking  before  we  returned  to 
camp.  Sitting  Bull  is  not  inclined  to  take  the  initia 
tive,  but  various  commands  of  our  forces  are  ready 
to  close  in  on  his  massed  warriors  at  the  first  oppor 
tunity.  He  is  a  crafty  red-skin. 

June  2d. — A  splendid  morning ;  the  sun  shone  out 
bright  and  hot. 

Moved  camp  about  two  miles  to  get  grazing  for 
the  horses.  A  scout  came  in  at  sun-down,  bringing 
mail  for  our  regiment.  It  was  received  with  delight. 
I  opened  a  late  paper  (three  months  [late),  and  saw 


88        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

eggs  quoted  at  120  a  dozen.  We  would  gladly  give 
120  each  for  reasonably  fresh  eggs. 

The  latest  in  regard  to  the  command  of  General 
Miles,  is  that  he  is  on  the  way  and  may  be  expected 
at  any  time,  but  it  is  not  believed  possible  for  him  to 
reach  us  soon,  because  mud  is  now  so  deep  that  teams 
could  not  get  through  with  necessary  supplies. 

There  are  no  hostiles  in  this  section  now,  but  they 
are  reported  to  be  gathering  in  large  numbers  near 
the  Blue  Grass  Mountains  and  Milk  River,  about  60 
miles  from  our  camp. 

June  4th— Sunday  again.  Weather  fine.  Two 
scouts  just  rode  in,  their  ponies  covered  with  foam. 
They  reported  a  party  of  Sioux  warriors  crossing  the 
river  three  miles  above  our  camp.  General  Sturges 
has  sent  a  wagon  train,  under  strong  guard,  to  the 
riyer,  to  bring  in  supplies  left  there  by  a  stean  er. 

We  hang  pretty  close  to  camp,  while  scouting 
parties  are  out  to  find  out  what  the  Sioux  are  doing ; 
our  scouts  report  that  there  are  no  hostiles  anywhere 
near  us. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  5th  we  had  mounted 
drill ;  but  to  my  mind  our  horses  need  food  and  rest 
more  that  such  exercise ;  many  of  them  are  so  worn 
down  as  to  be  unfit  for  service. 

Sergeant  M—  — ,  of  Company  M,  was  Right 
Principal  Guard  for  Colonel  Otis,  and  on  coming  to 
Battalion,  Right  Front  into  Line,  got  way  out  in  front 
of  the  Battalion,  into  the  position  that  belonged  to  the 
Colonel.  If  there  is  anything  that  the  Colonel  dotes 
on,  it  is  his  position ;  that  must  not  be  encroached  on. 
So  the  expected  happened.  He  exploded  ! 

"  What  are  you  doing  here  in  front  of  the  Battal 
ion  ?"  he  shouted  at  the  startled  Sergeant. 

"  I  was  trying  to  get  in  position  and  you  crowded 
me  out !"  the  Sergeant  replied,  saluting. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         89 

"  \V  here  are  you  from  ;  where  do  you  belong  ?"  the 
angry  Colonel  asked. 

"  From  Boston,  Sir,"  replied  the  rattled  Sergeant. 

"  I  wish  you  had  staid  there !"  said  the  Colonel  as 
he  rode  off  to  find  another  Right  Principal  Guide. 

A  very  cold  evening.  As  I  was  Trumpeter  of  the 
Guard,  I  spent  the  night  on  the  side  of  a  bluff,  nearly 
a  mile  from  camp,  with  the  pickets,  so  I  would  be  at 
hand,  if  we  were  approached  by  hostiles  during  the 
night,  and  could  sound  the  General  Alarm  and  arouse 
the  camp. 

Two  Indian  scouts  came  in  and  reported  Indian 
trails  and  a  camp  of  reds  a  few  miles  out.  Company 
H  was  routed  out  and  at  once  started  on  a  tour  of 
inspection,  with  orders  to  bring  in  all  Indians  they 
can  find.  Captain  Benteen  started  out,  delighted 
with  the  order.  He  is  not  the  man  to  run  away  from 
an  opportunity  to  have  a  little  fun  with  the  reds. 

A  team  started  under  guard,  for  Tongue  River, 
after  tobacco.  Most  of  the  men  have  been  without 
this  ration  for  three  days,  and  are  getting  desperate. 
This  morning  a  member  of  Company  B,  tobacco 
hungry,  dropped  in  at  Headquarters,  and  asked 
General  Sturges  for  a  chew !  The  General  complied 
and  asked  the  man  how  long  he  had  been  out  of  the 
weed.  Emboldened  by  his  success,  the  man  replied  : 

"  Over  a  week,  and  if  I  do  not  get  a  supply  soon  I 
will  skin  out  and  go  where  I  can  get  it." 

He  was  soon  under  guard. 

I  have  seen  men  neary  crazy  due  to  their  unsatis 
fied  longing  for  tobacco.  It  is  often  sold  for  ten 
dollars  a  pound  by  men  who  win  large  quantities  of 
it  at  poker. 

June  6th.— We  had  Battalion  drill  this  forenoon, 
which  was  immediately  followed  by  rain. 


90  SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

June  7th. — More  rain !    Continued  in  camp. 

On  the  8th  of  June  we  broke  camp  early  in  the 
morning,  and  were  happy  to  be  once  more  on  the  go. 
It  is  much  more  soul  satisfying  to  march  through 
constantly  changing  scenery,  than  to  stay  in  camp 
and  drill.  We  had  gone  a  short  distance,  when  the 
command  was  suddenly  halted  and  ordered  to  camp. 
This  action  is  much  like  that  of  a  man  who  is  not 
firmly  decided  whether  to  do  a  job  of  work ;  he 
begins,  then  suddenly  throws  aside  his  tools  and 
sits  down. 

Luck  was  with  us  this  time.  We  soon  had  our 
tents  pitched,  on  the  banks  of  Cherry  Creek.  This  is 
an  ideal  camping  place,  as  far  as  grass  and  water  are 
concerned,  but  we  have  to  carry  wood  about  a  mile. 

General  Sturges  to-day  issued  an  order  for  all  the 
trumpeters  to  practice  calls,  marches  and  quicksteps 
one  hour  each  day,  when  in  camp. 

Snow  storm  this  evening. 

June  9th. — We  had  drill  by  companies  in  the  fore 
noon  and  Battalion  drill  in  the  afternoon.  Just  as  the 
drill  was  over,  it  was  our  luck  to  be  treated  to  a  nice 
shower,  so  instead  of  being  able  to  take  a  nap,  we 
curl  up  in  our  pup-tents  and  roll  from  side  to  side, 
trying  to  dodge  the  rain  that  seeps  through  the  thin 
canvas.  These  tents  are  just  heavy  enough  to  shed 
the  sun,  but  are  not  good  for  anything  else,  unless  it 
is  good  to  whip  a  grass  fire  with. 

June  10th. — Sunday,  as  usual,  no  religious  service. 

June  11. — In  camp.  During  the  afternoon  and 
evening  Colonel  Otis  gave  a  birthday  party,  enter 
taining  the  commissioned  officers.  The  festivities 
were  held  in  a  hospital  wall  tent  pitched  near  head 
quarters,  with  all  the  company  guidons  stuck  in  the 
ground  around  it. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         91 


CHAPTER  TWENTY-ONE. 

Short  Marches  Numerous — Mounted   Indians  Race    Into 

Our  Camp — Mounted  Target  Practice  Fascinating 

—Pest  of  Egypitan  Locusts — Miles   City. 

JUNE  13. — Broke  camp  at  9  o'clock  and  marched 
a  single  mile.  Camped  and  drilled  until  the  horses 
were  nearly  tired  out. 

One  of  our  Indian  scouts  in  telling  a  companion 
about  the  cars  he  had  seen  in  Bismarck,  described 
them  as  "  Heap  wagon ;  no  hoss  !"  and  that  is  about 
what  this  expedition  has  amounted  to  so  far,  "  Heap 
march ;  no  fight !" 

Company  B  ordered  out  on  a  scout  towards  Dead- 
wood,  where  hostiles  are  reported  on  the  rampage. 
They  took  rations  for  thirty  days. 

June  14th,  rained  most  of  the  day.  One  company 
was  sent  on  a  scout  to  Big  Horn  river. 

After  Battalion  drill  on  the  15th,  just  after  we  got 
our  horses  "  on  the  line,"  there  was  a  cry  of  "Indians" 
from  the  pickets,  and  we  saw  way  off  on  the  prairie 
mounted  men  coming  our  way,  with  their  horses  on 
the  run.  We  were  quickly  formed  in  line  in  front  of 
the  officers,  and  thought  that  there  was  a  job  of  real 
work  cut  out  for  us.  On  they  c^me,  past  the  pickets 
and  right  up  to  the  Command.  They  were  Indians  for 
sure,  but  they  were  our  own  scouts.  They  had  been 
out  on  a  scout  and  were  racing  their  vigorous  and 
well-kept  ponies  back  to  camp. 

Didn't  we  shout  at  the  discovery  !  And  didn't  the 
picket  catch  it  for  giving  the  alarm.  But  the  picket 
had  obeyed  orders — to  give  an  alarm  on  the  approach 
of  a  body  of  Indians. 

June  15th,  1877.— A  fine  day  but  rather  cool.  We 
have  Battalion  drill  and  target  practice  in  the  after- 


92         SEVENTH    C  A  V  A  L  R'Y 


noon.  Mounted  target  practice  is  fascinating.  The 
target  is  made  from  pieces  of  hard-tack  boxes 
shaped  to  resemble  a  man  standing  erect.  The  com 
pany  is  formed  in  a  right  front  into  line,  and  then  the 
men  file  off  from  the  right  of  the  line,  with  horses  at 
a  walk.  They  do  not  stop  their  horses,  but  as  they 
pass  the  target  they  try  to  see  how  many  bullets  they 
can  put  through  the  tack  man,  firing  from  the  should 
er  ;  that  means  having  the  muzzle  of  your  revolver 
held  on  a  level  with  the  shoulder,  and  then  firing  as 
soon  as  the  arm  is  extended. 

As  soon  as  the  men  get  so  that  they  can  hit  the 
target  with  their  horses  on  a  walk,  at  thirty  paces 
from  it,  they  go  at  a  trot,  then  lope,  and  at  last  as  fast 
as  their  horses  can  run.  It  is  very  exciting,  both  to 
man  and  beast,  and  it  is  considered  good  shooting  to 
hit  a  target  and  load  and  hit  it  again,  in  a  distance  of 
not  more  than  forty  yards,  and  your  horse  on  a 
dead  run  all  the  time. 

After  drilling  and  taking  care  of  our  horses,  the 
men  loaf  around,  sleep,  tell  stories,  or  sing.  Here 
I  must  tell  you  of  our  singers,  as  they  are  called, 
Henry  Humer,  Robert  McNeil,  "  Whitey  "  Cane,  and 
"  Boots, "  the  basso  profundo  !  They  are  as  good  a 
lot  of  singers  as  can  be  found  in  the  army. 

Col.  Otis  often  asks  them  to  sing  his  favorite  for 
him,  "  Mother,  Kiss  Me  In  My  Dreams."  They  will 
sing  it  for  him,  but  they  know  he  hates  to  hear 
"  Susan  Jane"  the  "  One-Horse  Open  Shay"  and 
other  pieces  of  that  kind,  and  generally  end  it  up 
with  one  or  the  other  of  them,  You  can  just  bet  it 
makes  us  smile,  and  we  encore  our  songsters. 

June  17th.— A  hot,  sultry  day,  and  in  the  after 
noon  the  grasshoppers  came  in  great  numbers.  They 
were  so  thick  that  they  formed  a  cloud  between  the 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       93 

earth  and  the  sun,  similar  to  an  eclipse,  for  about  an 
hour.  As  the  wind  died  out  they  settled  to  the  ground, 
completely  covering  everything.  They  chewed  holes 
in  our  tents,  blanket,  overcoats,  etc.,  and  one  of  the 
men  lost  thirty  rounds  of  ammunition,  and  when 
questioned  as  to  what  had  become  of  it,  he  said  that 
the  grasshoppers  had  eaten  it,  brass  shells  and  all. 

They  were  the  largest  I  ever  saw,  some  of  them 
being  over  two  inches  in  length. 

The  pests  are  called  Egyptian  locusts. 

The  man  who  carries  the  mail  between  Fort 
Buford  and  Tongue  River,  came  into  camp  this  morn 
ing  on  foot,  minus  mail  and  outfit.  He  reported  that 
he  had  been  surprised  by  a  party  of  hostiles  as  he 
was  eating  and  his  ponies  were  resting,  and  had  saved 
himself  by  skulking  through  the  sage  bushes  ;  the 
reds  had  taken  the  two  ponies,  the  mail,  and  express 
packages,  and  disappeared  in  great  haste. 

Company  D,  was  immediately  ordered  to  take 
one  day's  rations,  go  to  the  place  where  the  rob 
bery  took  place,  pick  up  the  trail  of  the  thieves  and 
capture  or  kill  them  and  recover  the  mail.  The  mail 
carrier  was  taken  along,  as  also  a  number  of  Indian 
scouts. 

We  are  again  short  of  rations. 

Company  I  was  ordered  to  report  at  Tongue  Riyer 
Post,  in  light  marching  order,  which  means  no  tents, 
no  extra  clothing,  no  supplies.  Company  I  got  off  this 
morning. 

There  are  indications  of  a  general  move  on  the 
hostiles.  There  was  mounted  regimental  drill  and 
target  practice  in  the  afternoon. 

June  19.— Weather  fine.  In  the  saddle  at  7:30,  go 
five  miles  and  camp  on  Cedar  Creek.  This  stream 
gets  its  name  from  a  small  grove  of  cedar  trees  on  its 
bank. 


94        SEVENTH  CAV  ALRY 


Company  D  returned  from  their  scout  after  the 
mail  thieves,  and  reported  following  the  trail  until 
they  overtook  them,  when  the  Indians  scattered.  Our 
men  did  not  recover  anything. 

General  Call  sounded  bright  and  early  the  morn 
ing  of  June  20th.  We  move  forward  18  miles  and 
camp.  Had  a  lively  time  with  rattlesnakes  as  we 
began  camp  work,  but  a  free  use  of  sabres  soon 
cleaned  them  out.  Prickly  pears  and  cactus  are  so 
thick  that  we  are  given  orders  to  camp  at  will,  which 
we  did.  The  result  was  a  general  mix-up. 

Two  men  on  picket  duty  fired  their  guns  at  jack- 
rabbits,  and  were  ordered  brought  in.  They  were 
taken  before  Colonel  Otis,  who  lectured  them  and 
placed  them  in  charge  of  the  guard,  with  orders  that 
the  culprits  be  required  to  walk  during  marches  for  a 
a  whole  week.  One  of  the  offenders  said :  "  Got  two 
rabbits  and  are  to  have  a  vacation  for  a  whole  week !" 

June  21st. — Broke  camp  at  6  o'clock,  and  after 
marching  15  miles  camp  in  a  very  fair  place,  with 
good  feed  for  the  horses.  We  have  now  butchered 
the  last  of  our  cattle,  and  will  for  a  time  be  without 
fresh  meat,  as  we  are  out  of  the  way  of  deer  and 
antelope. 

Some  of  the  men  found  what  they  termed  lamb's 
quarters,  a  tender  and  pleasant  tasting  edible  weed, 
which  we  gathered  and  cooked  as  we  would  dandelion 
greens.  They  made  excellent  food.  We  also  found 
Indian  wild  onions  in  abundance — which  went  very 
well  with  the  greens.  We  go  a  mile  for  water ;  the 
only  fuel  obtainable  is  "  buffalo  chips." 

June  22. — March  four  miles  and  camp  on  the  banks 
of  Big  Sunday  Creek,  only  three  and  one-half  miles 
from  Tongue  River  Cantonment.  Miles  City  can  be 
seen  in  the  distance  ;  a  large  assemblage  of  tents,  log 


FIGHTING    INDIANS          95 

houses  and  rough  board  huts,  squatting  on  the  V 
shaped  lands  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  Tongue 
and  the  Yellowstone  rivers.  There  are  groups  of  tall 
cottonwood  trees  nearby.  We  see  near  the  landing 
stacks  of  forage  for  the  cavalry,  and  the  camp  of 
General  Miles's  renowned  Eleventh  Cavalry — com 
posed  of  members  of  the  Fifth  Infantry  mounted  on 
ponies  cuptured  from  the  Indians.  A  quaint,  but 
useful,  little  ferry  boat,  guided  from  side  to  side  of 
the  river  by  wires  so  adjusted  that  the  current  sup 
plies  the  propelling  power,  keeps  on  the  move.  On 
the  flat  land  beyond  Miles  City  are  large  stacks  of 
prairie  grass,  which  will  be  hauled  across  the  river  as 
soon  as  a  sufficiently  strong  ice-bridge  has  been 
constructed  by  Jack  Frost. 

This  is  Miles  City,  as  seen  from  a  distance.  It  is 
a  rough  place,  full  of  saloons,  gambling  hells,  dance 
halls  and  brothels. 

Our  present  camp  is  the  thirtieth  we  have  occu 
pied  since  April  21st,  and  during  the  interval  we  have 
marched  one  thousand  and  three  hundred  miles ! 

It  is  rumored  that  we  are  to  go  from  here  to  Milk 
Mountains,  and  there  we  will  find  plenty  of  big  game. 
These  rumors  are  always  interesting. 


96        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER  TWENTY-TWO. 

Camp  Where  Rattlesnakes  Are  Numerous — Wagon    Train 

Arrives    From    Miles  City  With  Supplies  for  Man 

and  Beast — At  Last  Ready  to  Close  In  On  Reds. 

JUNE  22d,  1877. — Rattlesnakes  are  very  thick  here, 
but  no  one  has  been  bitten  yet  and  all  very  carefu1 
not  to  be.  While  lying  down  on  the  ground  to-day,  to 
take  a  nap,  Captain  French  heard  a  slight  rustle  in 
the  sage  bush  near  his  head,  and  he  was  not  long  in 
getting  up  either.  On  investgating  with  sabre  he 
found  a  fine  rattler,  and  soon  transferred  its  spirit  to 
the  happy  hunting  grounds. 

A  wagon  train  with  fifty  wagons  came  in  to-day 
from  Tongue  River.  They  brought  forage  and  rations. 
The  teamsters  reported  General  Miles  as  fixing  up 
for  a  big  campaign. 

Ordered  out  on  another  scout,  to-day,  and  while 
out  met  a  party  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  Indians. 
They  said  they  were  out  on  a  hunt,  by  permission  of 
General  Miles,  and  as  they  had  one  of  Miles's  scouts 
with  them,  we  let  them  proceed  on  their  way.  The 
scout  who  was  with  them,  as  I  was  then  informed, 
is  a  half-bread,  who  shot  and  killed  a  man  at  Cheyenne 
Agency  in  1876,  but  he  has  never  been  arrested  or 
even  examined  on  the  subject,  and  goes  and  comes 
at  will,  being  considered  a  hard  case  and  owing  to 
his  readiness  with  a  gun,  is  considered  a  bad  man  to 
tackle.  He  is  reported  to  have  married  one  of  Sitting 
Bull's  daughters,  and  has  been  employed  as  a  scout 
by  General  Miles  all  Summer.  He  looks  like  a  dirty, 
lazy  loafer,  but  must  be  a  good  scout,  or  else  General 
Miles  would  not  have  him  around.  He  is  also  said  to 
be  one  of  the  scouts  who  refused  to  go  into  the  last 
Battle  with  Custer 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       97 


On  the  morning  of  June  23d,  I  went  up  on  one  of 
the  bluffs,  on  a  prospecting  tour  for  moss  agates. 
There  are  splendid  ones  on  the  higher  ridges.  I  found 
a  great  many  that  would  compare  favorably  with 
any  I  ever  saw  in  rings  that  cost  as  high  as  fifty 
dollars.  They  are  of  different  shades,  shapes  and 
sizes,  and  many  of  them  have  inside  what  looks  like 
the  shadow  of  a  bush. 

The  headquarters  team  went  to  the  post  to-day, 
and  came  back  with  some  nice  new  and  heavy 
pup-tents  for  the  officers.  This  looks  like  business. 
Rained  in  the  afternoon,  and  mail  for  our  regiment 
arrived  from  Tongue  River. 

June  24th. — No  moving  orders  yet.  Bought  a  dozen 
eggs.  They  turned  out  to  be  condensed  chickens,  but 
the  sutler  charge  d  the  small  sum  of  one  dollar  and 
twenty-five  cents  for  them  just  the  same.  So  our 
surplus  is  again  reduced,  without  any  personal 
benefit,  It  seemed  rather  hard  to  pay  such  prices,  but 
you  must  do  it,  The  men  in  power  will  give  one 
man  the  exclusive  privilege  of  accompanying  the 
regiment,  and  the  sutler  charges  the  men 'what  he 
has  a  mind  to.  Of  course  he  does  not  charge  the 
officers  as  much  as  he  does  the  men,  and  that  makes 
it  all  right  in  that  quarter.  Great  pains  are  taken  to 
keep  that  wagon  at  the  head  of  the  train. 

The  question  arises,  "  But  why  do  soldiers  buy  of 
the  sutler  if  he  charges  such  excessive  prices  ?"  Well, 
we  all  admit  that  we  ought  to  pass  up  the  sutler,  but 
if  a  man  is  sick  and  tired  of  tack  and  bacon,  and  has 
only  short  allowances  of  that  part  of  the  time,  and 
has  a  chance  to  get  anything  different,  even  if  it 
takes  a  whole  month's  salary  to  procure  one  square 
meal,  he  will  make  the  venture.  A  man  will  pay 
any  price  for  a  meal  rather  than  endure  the  pangs  of 
extreme  hunger.  And  if  a  soldier  has  not  got  the 


98        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

ready  cash,  he  can  easly  get  a  sutler's  check  which 
will  buy  just  as  much  as  cash,  and  the  amount  is 
deducted  from  the  soldier's  pay  by  the  Paymaster. 
Sutler's  should  not  be  allowed  to  issue  such  checks, 
and  should  be  compelled  to  rely  on  their  resources  to 
keep  up  with  a  command. 

June  25th,  1877.— This  the  anniversary  of  the 
Custer  Massacre  on  the  Little  Big  Horn.  The  brave 
General  and  his  entire  command,  sent  out  by  General 
Terry,  Department  Commander,  on  a  scout,  were 
trapped  by  Sitting  Bull,  whose  fighting  force  was 
twelve  times  as  large.  Now  Setting  Bull  must  know 
his  days  are  numbered. 

This  is  a  rainy  day.  Had  inspection  and  mounted 
drill,  with  sabre  and  revolver  practice.  In  the  after 
noon  it  was  very  warm.  We  can  see  and  hear  the 
steamboats  on  the  Missouri  and  Yellowstone  rivers, 
so  do  not  consider  we  are  entirely  out  of  the  world. 
There  are  thirty -eight  different  steamers  on  the  up 
per  Missouri  this  Summer. 

June  27th,  a  fine  day.  Drill !  Drill !  Drill !  Some 
of  the  horses  are  about  all  in. 

Saw  some  unusually  large  meteors  during  the 
evening.  One  of  them  was  in  sight  for  fully  one 
minute,  lighting  up  the  heavens  for  miles  around, 
and  then  it  disappeared  as  suddenly  as  it  came. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         99 


CHAPTER    TWENTY-THREE. 

Hurricane  Sends  Camp  Tents  Flying — Wrong  Bugle  Call 

Causes  Confusion — General  Miles  Takes  Command 

— Big  Drive  Against  Hostiles  Is  Under  Way. 

THE  sun  came  out  very  hot  the  morning  of  July 
1st,  but  thunder  soon  began  to  rumble,  and  large  and 
densely  black  clouds  gathered  in  the  distance,  and 
came  direct  for  our  camp.  Tent  pins  were  driven 
deeper  and  preparations  made  to  make  the  best 
defense  possible  against  the  wind  and  rain.  The 
storm  was  furious.  Tents  flew  around  in  the  air. 
The  best  we  could  do  was  to  lie  close  to  the  ground. 
We  were  afraid  that  the  wind  would  blow  that  away 
too.  Occasionally  we  could  hear  hard  words,  as  the 
wind  would  take  some  man's  hat  or  blanket  and  go 
dancing  over  the  prairie  with  it.  We  let  things 
amuse  themselves,  and  when  the  storm  was  over 
gathered  what  we  could  find  and  were  soon  house 
keeping  once  more,  but  with  parts  of  our  houses 
missing.  Needless  to  say  we  got  soaking  wet — most 
of  the  officers  included. 

A  trumpeter  "  got  rattled,"  when  the  storm  having 
passed  over,  he  was  ordered  to  sound  Stable  Call,  and 
instead  sounded  General  Call — which  is  the  signal  to 
take  down  tents,  pack  saddles  and  get  ready  to  move* 
The  men  got  busy,  but  a  moment  later  the  trumpeter 
"  came  out  of  it "  and  restored  things  to  their  proper 
order  by  sounding  first  Recall  and  then  Stable  Call- 
But  didn't  that  trumpeter  catch  it  at  headquarters' 
where  he  was  immediately  wanted.  He  was  given  a 
reprimand,  and  that  closed  the  incident.  As  an  ex 
cuse,  he  said  to  the  Adjutant,  "  There  must  have  been 
sand  in  my  trumpet !"  The  Adjutant  said,  "  You 
need  more  sand  in  your  gizzard  !" 


100        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


July  2d,  1877.— The  only  thing  out  of  the  usual 
routine  of  camp  duties  that  transpired  to-day,  was  the 
detailing  of  Cavalrymen  to  act  as  Artillerymen. 

July  3d. — Ordered  to  break  camp  at  3  o'clock  in 
the  morning.  Something  is  going  to  happen  ! 

A  despatch  came  in,  saying  that  hostiles  had  ap- 
peard  in  force  near  Glendive  Creek,  and  that  an 
attack  was  feared.  Help  was  asked  for,  and  two 
companies  of  the  Second  Cavalry,  which  were  then 
in  camp  at  Tongue  River,  and  five  pieces  of  artillery 
were  put  on  the  steamboat  Kansas,  and  away  they 
went  as  fast  as  steam  and  current  could  take  them. 
They  have  orders  to  join  us  in  three  days,  to  march 
north,  if  it  is  not  necessary  for  them  to  stay  at 
Glendive.  More  rain  in  the  evening. 

July  4th,  and  hurrah  for  everyboyd  ! 

Broke  camp  at  two  o'clock.  No  one  but  General 
Miles  knows  where  we  are  going,  and  he  is  not  the 
kind  of  a  man  to  tell. 

We  made  a  still  march  of  about  twenty-four  miles 
and  then  went  into  camp.  General  Miles  joined  us  in 
the  evening,  with  a  wagon  train  of  seventy  wagons, 
and  one  hundred  pack  mules.  There  seems  to  already 
be  a  different  look  on  the  way  things  are  to  go.  We 
now  have  a  man  at  the  head  who  is  not  afraid  of  his 
shadow,  and  who  we  think  will  make  others  hump 
themselves  to  keep  up  with  the  precession. 

General  Miles,  although  a  young  man,  seems  to  be 
possessed  of  fine  judgement,  and  does  not  put  on  as 
much  style  when  at  work,  as  a  clerk  in  the  Adjutant's 
tent.  He  is  as  brave  as  was  General  Custer,  though 
we  miss  in  him  that  dash  that  caused  General 
Custer's  death.  He  wants  to  see  where  he  is  going, 
but  when  he  sees  he  goes.  He  is  called  "Buffalo 
Soldier  "  by  the  Indians,  and  they  say  that  no  bullet 
can  hurt  him.  We  hope  that  none  ever  will. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        101 


The  ground  was  covered  with  a  thin  coat  of  snow 
this  morning,  but  it  turned  out  to  be  very  warm  dur 
ing  the  day.  Camped  on  Custer  Creek.  Slight  fall  of 
snow  in  the  evening. 

On  the  5th  of  July,  we  broke  camp  at  five  o'clock 
in  the  morning.  Company  M  was  rear  guard  to-day, 
and  we  had  lots  of  fun  helping  the  wagons  out  of  the 
mud,  and  over  bad  portions  of  the  road. 

Thermometer  at  90  degrees  in  the  shade  of  the 
ambulance ;  no  water  along  the  route  only  what  we 
can  get  out  of  the  mud  holes. 

Our  command  now  consists  of  nine  companies  of 
the  7th  Cavalry;  two  companies  of  the  2d  Cavalry; 
five  companies  of  the  5th  Infantry  (which  are  mount 
ed  on  captured  Indian  ponies),  one  heavy  parrot  gun 
and  one  small  breech-loading  mountain  howitzer. 

We  have  seventy  wagons,  two  hundred  pack 
mules,  thirty  Indian  scouts,  and  four  white  .  scouts.  In 
the  commissary  department  they  have  twenty  Cali 
fornia  and  Texas  packers,  who  pack,  unpack,  and 
take  care  of  the  mules  and  attend  to  the  cattle  herd, 
which  now  numbers  about  seventy  head  but  will  soon 
be  reduced  to  nothing  if  we  do  not  get  where  there 
are  more  buffalo. 

After  marching  over  twenty-eight  miles  we  camp 
ed  on  the  banks  of  High  Creek.  This  creek  gets  its 
name  from  its  high  banks,  which  rise  for  hundreds 
of  feet  on  either  side. 

July  6th  we  were  in  the  saddle  at  five  o'clock,  and 
headed  for  Idaho  Territory,  glad  to  be  rid  of  the  dull 
monotony  of  camp  life,  but  sorry  that  our  horses  are 
not  in  better  order,  as  they  have  nearly  had  the  hides 
drilled  off  from  them. 

It  is  a  grand  sight  to  look  back  and  see  the  long 
columns  of  troops  and  wagons  crawling  over  the 
prairie,  the  pack  mules  all  following  the  gray  horse 


102      SEVENTH  CAVALRY 


with  the  bell  on;  and  to  see  the  big  stacks  of  hard 
tack  boxes  weave  from  side  to  side  as  the  mules  plod 
steadily  along.  The  gray  horse  is  called  the  "  Bell- 
horse;  "  and  the  mules  will  follow  it  wherever  it  goes. 

Watch  that  mule  that  is  slyly  getting  out  of  the 
line;  do  you  know  what  he  is  going  to  do  ?  I  do,  and 
so  does  that  packer  who  is  coming,  with  his  horse  on 
a  run.  When  a  mule  gets  tired,  or  lazy,  whichever  it 
is,  or  both  together,  he  will  step  out  of  the  line,  and  if 
not  watched  very  close,  will  lie  down,  and  as  the  load 
is  so  heavy  that  he  can't  get  up  with  it  on,  they  have 
to  be  unpacked  in  order  to  get  them  up. 

See  him  get  down  ;  there  he  goes,  flat  on  his  side ! 

Now  the  mule  must  be  unpacked,  whipped  to  his 
feet,  arid  repacked  when  he  gets  back  on  all  fours, 
and  the  whip  will  be  a  propelling  power  to  make  him 
hustle  and  catch  up  with  the  rest.  It  would  not  do 
to  let  them  all  stop  when  one  goes  down  as  they 
would  all  be  apt  to  lie  down,  and  it  would  detain  the 
whole  command  for  near  and  hour  waiting  for  the 
mules  to  be  unpacked,  got  on  their  feet  and  repacked 
and  in  marching  order  again 

A  mule  is  no  fool,  and  a  fool  is  not  a  mule ;  you 
can  bet  on  that  every  time. 

The  following  conversation  between  Colonel  Otis 
and  Major  Merrill  was  overheard  to-day  by  an 
Orderly  : 

"  Major,  what  name  do  you  think  the  men  use 
when  they  refer  to  me  ?" 

"  Don't  know,"  the  Major  replied. 

"  Bulldozer  T  said  the  Colonel  in  an  angry  tone. 

"  That  is  nothing,"  said  the  Major,  "  they  refer  to 
me  as  Four-Eyed-Son-of-a-Gun !" 

And  so  it  goes,  "  the  men  "  have  a  nickname  for 
each  officer — some  complimentary,  some  otherwise. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         103 

CHAPTER  TWENTY-FOUR. 

Visit  Battlefield  of  Former  Campaign  and  Site  of  Former 

Indian  Village— General  Miles  Orders    Charge    On 

Fleeing  Indians — A  Thrilling  Adventure. 

WE  passed  over  the  battlefield  of  1874,  where  Gen 
eral  Stanley  and  his  command  were  so  badly  cut  up 
by  Sioux  Indians.  Bones  were  strewn  on  the  ground 
quite  thick.  Here  is  the  skeleton  of  a  horse  and  close 
to  it  the  skeleton  of  a  man,  the  bare  and  bleached 
bones  glistening  in  the  sunlight,  and  the  whitened 
skull  looking  grinningly  up  at  us  as  we  ride  past. 
Near  these  bones  we  notice  a  dozen  or  more  empty 
cartridge  shells,  sure  proof  that  the  soldier  had  died 
in  the  line  of  duty. 

"  Will  our  bones  ever  lie  and  bleach  in  such  a 
place  ?"  we  wonder  as  we  go  on — to  we  know  not 
what! 

We  now  ride  over  a  beautiful  table  land,  flat  and 
smooth  as  a  barn  floor.  It  forms  a  point  made  by  the 
Yellowstone  River  and  High  Creek,  where  they  join; 
then  through  bad-lands,  cut  up  by  deep  ravines  and 
gulches.  Not  a  spear  of  grass  or  a  bit  of  cactus  or 
other  growth  relieves  the  eye.  This  is  a  land  of 
desolation.  We  enter  a  deep  ravine,  and  along  the 
bottom  we  go,  rock  walls  rise  thirty,  sixty,  in  places 
a  hundred  feet  above  our  heads  on  either  side.  What 
a  place  for  an  ambuscade !  But  our  scouts  are  ahead 
and  it  is  safe  to  follow  them. 

Cutting  sand  and  fine  dust  strike  our  faces,  fill  our 
eyes  and  make  breathing  difficult.  Look,  there  are 
massive  rocks  ahead  that  block  our  way ;  no,  we  take 
a  sharp  turn  to  the  right,  and  emerge  from  desolation 
directly  into  paradise !  The  finest,  smoothest,  largest 
meadow  I  ever  saw  is  right  before  me — a  mead 
ow  where  a  scythe  has  never  been  swung.  The 
rich  grass  brushes  the  legs  of  the  cavalrymen  as  they 
ride  through  it. 


104        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

Halt  /—sounds  the  trumpet. 

Dismount  /—it  sounds  again,  and  we  get  off  our 
horses,  remove  the  bits  from  their  mouths  and  let 
them  eat  and  be  happy  while  they  can.  We  are  to 
wait  here  until  the  wagon  train  catches  up  with  us. 

General  Miles  is  half  a  mile  ahead  of  us  with  his 
scouts.  He  is  signaling.  What  does  that  mean  ? 

INDIANS  ! 

The  trumpet  sounds  To  Horse  ! — and  we  quickly 
put  the  bits  in  our  horses'  mouths,  arnd  are  ready. 

Mount ! — goes  the  trumpet,  and  we  mount.  There 
is  no  confusion,  no  misunderstanding  the  tones  of  the 
trumpet,  for  it  is  in  the  hands  of  Chief  Trumpeter 
Hardy  himself. 

Forward  /—sounds  the  trumpet  again,  and  forward 
we  go.  We  make  for  that  bluff  where  we  can  see 
General  Miles. 

When  we  had  gone  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  we  saw 
saw  some  one  leave  the  bluff  and  ride  full  speed  to 
intercept  Trumpeter  Hardy.  The  two  meet,  Trum 
peter  Hardy  bends  over  in  the  saddle  to  receive  an 
order,  sent  by  General  Miles,  and  then  as  he  straight 
ens  up  there  is  a  bright  flash  in  the  sunlight.  He  has 
in  hand  the  copper  bugle  he  carried  when  he  was  with 
Custer  during  the  Civil  War.  See  !  He  raises  it  to 
his  lips  and  the  tones  of  the  bugle  sound  out  clear 
and  strong.  W  hat  melody !  But  what  is  the  order  ? 

Companies  Right  Into  Line!— and  putting  our 
selves  into  that  position  in  an  instant,  we  ride 
forward. 

Gallop  /—is  the  next  call.  At  last !  Aha,  this  is 
something  like  it !  Just  what  we  had  heard  about 
but  had  given  up  all  hopes  of  taking  part  in. 

A  Trumpeter  of  each  company  is  with  his  Captain, 
and  another  stays  by  the  First  Sergeant  of  the  Com- 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         105 

pany.    It  is  the  duty  of  these  company  trumpeters  to 
tell  what  the  calls  mean  and  to  repeat  them. 

How  our  travel-worn  horses  do  pull  out,  each  do 
ing  its  best. 

Deploy  Skirmishers,  By  the  Right  and  Left  Flank  ! 
— is  the  next  call  sounded,  and  the  six  companies  of 
the  Seventh  Cavalary  take  their  positions  twenty 
yards  apart,  with  horses  on  a  gallop. 

CHARGE  /—commands  the  bugle  of  Chief  Trum 
peter  Hardy.  Twelve  Company  Trumpeters  repeat 
this  call,  and  on  we  go  as  fast  as  we  can  make  our 
horses  travel.  We  make  the  top  of  the  bluff,  and, 
whew !  about  two  miles  distant  are  about  two  score 
mounted  f  Indian  braves,  and  there  may  be  several 
thousand  more  behind  that  other  bluff.  On  we  rush 
—but  will  the  reds  stand  ?  No,  they  are  off !  See 
them  lash  their  ponies  !  Hear  them  yell !  Up  hill 
and  down  we  keep  up  the  chase,  but  get  no  nearer 
the  fugitives.  Our  horses  are  flecked  with  foam  and 
many  of  them  begin  to  lag.  The  wagon  train  and 
pack  mules  are  out  of  sight. 

We  reach  the  top  of  a  ridge,  and  on  the  flat  land 
below,  quietly  resting  on  the  bank  of  Cherry  Creek, 
are  our  savages — those  two  score  Indians  we  have 
been  trying  so  hard  to  catch.  We  have  been  chasing 
our  own  scouts,  friendly  Cheyennes  and  Crows,  who 
had  that  morning  been  sent  on  ahead  to  scout  for 
hostiles. 

Recall  was  sounded,  and  Rally  by  Companies  fol 
lows.  We  are  soon  in  proper  trim.  Word  was  then 
passed  along,  that  General  Miles  wishing  to  see  now 
the  Seventh  Cavalry  would  respond  in  an  emergency 
had  instructed  the  scouts  to  make  the  fake  run,  and 
they  most  successfully  complied  with  his  orders. 

We  went  into  camp.  The  wagon  train  and  pack 
mules  came  in  late. 


106        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER  TWENTY-FIVE. 

Where  Miles  Defeated  Sitting  Bull  in   1876— Bones    Litter 

The  Battle  Field— Pownee  Tom  Secures  Necklace 

of  Bear-Claws — Crazy  Jim's  Strange  Feast. 

BROKE  camp  on  the  morning  of  July  7th  at  six 
o'clock,  marched  about  ten  miles  and  went  into  camp 
on  the  battle  field  where  a  part  of  General  Miles's 
command  had  a  tussle  with  a  body  of  Sitting  Bull's 
warriors  last  Summer,  and  whipped  twice  their 
own  number.  There  are  thousands  of  old  tepee 
poles  and  wooden  pins  lying  on  the  ground,  where 
they  were  abandoned  by  the  reds.  The  tepee  poles 
are  from  ten  to  twenty  feet  long,  straight  and 
smooth,  one  end  of  most  of  them  having  been  worn 
to  a  sharp  point,  due  to  being  dragged  on  the  ground. 
When  moving  their  villages,  the  Indians  fasten  one 
end  of  two  or  more  tepee  poles  on  the  sides  of  a  pony 
and  permit  the  other  end  to  drag.  On  the  back  of 
pony  as  well  as  on  the  dragging  tepee  poles  unduly 
heavy  burdens  are  carried. 

Buffalo  bones  are  scattered  all  about  this  former 
site  of  an  Indian  village.  There  are  hundreds  of  deer 
and  buffalo  hides  staked  down  to  the  ground,  which 
shows  that  the  squaws  were  engaged  in  their  tanning 
processes  when  surprised  by  the  soldiers.  The  hides 
were  all  hard  and  wrinkled,  and  were  good  for 
nothing. 

We  explored  the  old  village    pretty    thoroughly. 

Manly  little  bags  of  paints  and  charms  were  found 
as  also  an  old  carbine,  an  old  flint-lock  pistol,  a  few 
axe-helves  with  the  letters  "  U.  S.  Q.  M.  D."  branded 
on  them,  part  of  a  coffee-mill  the  drawer  of  which 
contained  a  quantity  of  beads  and  herbs  done  up  in 
bits  of  rags,  and  tied  with  pieces  of  sinew. 

Several  axes  and  the  axe-helves,  with  the  coffee- 
mill,  were  relics  of  the  Custer  Massacre.  A  horse- 
brush  was  found  by  one  of  the  men,  that  still  bore 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        107 


upon  its  back  the  following  inscription,   cut  in  with  a 
knife : 

"  C.  B.,  Co.  F.,  7th  Cav.,  1873." 

This  brush  had  belonged  to  a  Sergeant  in  that 
company,  who  was  killed  in  the  Indian  campaign 
of  1873. 

My  company  was  detailed  for  picket  duty  to-nght 
and  had  just  got  the  pickets  posted,  when  around 
came  an  order  for  the  First  Battalion  to  be  ready  to 
start  on  a  five  day's  scout  at  5  o'clock  in  the  morning. 
We  were  at  once  relieved  from  picket  duty,  and  drew 
extra  amunition,  and  enough  hard-tack  and  bacon  to 
keep  us  good  and  salty  for  six  days.  We  did  not  get 
but  little  sleep  all  night  long.  Now  that  General 
Miles  has  left  us,  we  expect  to  do  nothing  but  fool 
around  from  camp  to  camp,  and  drill  what  little  life 
our  horses  have  out  of  them. 

Broke  camp  the  morning  of  July  8th  at  5  o'clock, 
and  taking  a  pretty  fresh  Indian  trail,  followed  it  until 
about  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  then  halted  for  the 
night.  Have  to  govern  our  marches  now  so  as  to 
keep  behind  Indians  that  may  be  on  the  war-path, 
and  so  that  we  will  have  water  at  the  camps.  March 
thirty  miles.  We  have  no  extra  clothing  but  over 
coats,  and  many  of  the  men  have  not  got  that  much, 
as  they  have  thrown  their  overcoats  away  in  order  to 
lighten  the  load  of  their  horse. 

General  Miles  left  us  to  go  to  Glendive,  taking 
Company  E  as  an  escort. 

We  pass  abandoned  tepee  poles  and  other  Indian 
belongings  in  large  quantities,  indicating  that  the 
reds  ahead  of  us  are  in  a  hurry. 

July  9th. — Broke  camp  at  5  o'clock  and  follow  the 
Indian  trail.  Marched  over  rough  country.  Saw 
numerous  antelope.  Pass  three  dead  ponies,  and  two 
dead  Indians.  The  bodies  of  the  Indians  had  been 


108     SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

placed  on  poles.  It  is  probable  that  the  ponies  had 
been  sacrificed  that  their  owners  might  enter  the 
Happy  Hunting  grounds  in  due  and  ancient  form. 

Pawnee  Tom,  a  half-breed  scout,  shot  and  wound 
ed  a  cinnamon  bear,  this  afternoon.  He  left  his  pony 
and  crawled  on  his  hands  and  knees  nearly  a  thous 
and  yards  to  get  near  enough  for  a  shot ;  as  soon  as 
the  gun  was  fired  the  bear  headed  for  a  gulley 
near  by.  By  the  time  Tom  had  remounted  his  pony 
the  bear  had  disappeared,  but  he  trailed  the  wounded 
animal  to  its  lair,  and  a  second  shot  ended  its  life.  As 
the  result  of  his  bravery,  Tom  secured  a  necklace  of 
bear's  claws,  and  will  henceforth  have  a  voice  in  the 
councils  of  his  tribe. 

We  find  wild  goose  berries  in  abundance,  but  they 
are  exceedingly  sour. 

Saddles  are  kept  packed  all  the  time  now,  with 
everything  in  readiness  for  a  fight  with  hostiles  at 
any  moment.  At  night  our  beds  consist  of  our  saddle- 
blankets  spread  on  the  ground,  and  our  saddles  for 
pillows,  and  they  are  good  ones  We  lie  down,  shut 
our  eyes,  imagine  we  are  covered  up,  and  go  to  sleep, 
not  to  wake  till  morning  ;  unless  it  rains,  when  we 
cover  our  heads  with  a  corner  of  the  blanket,  roll 
over,  and  are  soon  sound  asleep  again. 

The  morning  of  July  10th  we  broke  camp  at  five 
o'clock,  marched  33  miles,  and  went  into  camp  on  the 
bank  of  Yellow  Muddy  Creek.  This  creek  gets  its 
name  from  the  yellow  mud  that  colors  the  water ;  and 
it  looked  to  me  a  good  deal  like  mush. 

We  have  an  abundance  of  antelope  meat,  and  book 
it  in  different  ways,  the  most  common  being  to  place 
it  on  coals.  Of  course  it  tastes  smokey  and  is  more 
or  less  scorched,  but  it  is  eaten  with  keen  relish. 

While  riding  my  horse  to  water  this  evening,  he 
took  it  into  his  head  to  see  what  he  could,  and  having 
nothing  on  him  but  a  halter  and  lariat  I  let  him  go  it. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS     109 


I  was  given  an  exhilarating  ride.  After  running  about 
a  mile,  and  jumping  over  a  ditch  that  was  fully  ten 
feet  across  and  twenty-five  deep,  I  stopped  him  just 
in  time  to  prevent  him  from  jumping  into  or  over 
the  Captain's  tent! 

We  killed  a  large  number  of  rattlesnakes  in  the 
camp,  and  Crazy  Jim  skinned,  cooked,  and  ate  one, 
with  as  much  relish  as  I  ever  saw  a  man  eat  a  piece 
of  eel.  He  said  it  tasted  a  good  deal  like  an  eel,  only 
it  was  sweeter  and  not  so  tough.  There  was  no  one 
in  the  company  who  wanted  to  borrow  his  frying  pan 
after  that.  He  stuffed  the  skin  of  the  snake  full  of 
grass,  and  then  wore  it  round  his  neck  just  as  you 
would  a  scarf. 

Crazy  Jim,  or  James  Severs,  as  his  name  really  is, 
is  from  Indiana,  and  is  a  brave  and  ever-ready  soldier. 
He  was  named  Crazy  Jim  on  the  campaign  last  year, 
when,  at  the  time  of  the  massacre  of  the  men  on  the 
Little  Big  Horn,  he  saved  a  pack  mule  and  its  load  of 
ammunition  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians, 
at  the  risk  of  his  own  life.  While  he  was  after  the 
mule  the  Indians  fired  over  one  hundred  shots  at  him, 
but  not  a  bullet  happened  to  hit  him,  although  they 
caused  dust  to  fly  near  hin  in  all  directions.  He  is 
now  wearing  one  stripe  on  his  dress  coat  sleeve, 
showing  that  he  has  served  one  five  years'  enlistment, 
and  is  now  on  his  second.  He  re-enlisted  last  winter 
at  Fort  Rice,  and  says  he  will  must  have  a  furlough 
this  winter,  as  there  is  a  girl  digging  leeks  in  Indiana 
that  he  wants  to  see  mighty  bad, 

We  were  up  very  early  on  the  morning  of 
July  llth,  and  were  in  the  saddle  at  3:45.  I  got  per 
mission  of  the  Captain  to  hunt  along  the  line  of  march 
with  Private  Neeley.  Antelope  were  very  thick,  but  a 
little  sly.  I  shot  my  first  antelope  on  this  hunt.  Neeley 
shot  five  out  of  one  herd,  and  we  took  the  hind 


110        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

quarters  of  six  of  them  on  our  horses  and  started  to 
join  the  command.  They  were  a  heavy  load  for  our 
poor  animals. 

We  got  nearly  nine  miles  from  the  line  of  march 
which  I  think  is  doing  very  well  for  two  men  in  a 
hostile  country.  While  we  were  yet  about  three  miles 
from  camp  we  saw  three  riders  coming  towards  us, 
and  we  did  not  wait  to  see  what  they  wanted  but 
hurried  on  towards  the  camp  as  fast  as  our  horses 
could  very  well  travel  with  the  heavy  loads  we  had. 
We  had  no  extra  liking  for  a  battle  on  the  open 
prairie  with  that  kind  of  game,  and  on  looking  back 
and  seeing  that  they  were  running  their  ponies,  and 
seeing  that  we  could  not  get  to  camp  before  they 
overtook  us,  we  rode  up  to  the  foot  of  a  bluff,  and 
then  led  our  horses  to  the  top  of  it.  We  had  not  the 
least  doubt  but  that  we  were  in  for  a  fight  and  wanted 
to  have  all  the  advantage  on  our  side.  We  would 
have  given  all  the  meat  we  had  to  have  been  in  camp 
at  that  particular  time,  but  we  did  not  intend  to 
surrender;  oh,  no ! 

We  waited  in  silence  for  nearly  five  minutes,  and 
as  the  men  came  nearer  and  they  did  not  look  so 
much  like  Indians  as  they  had  but  a  short  time  before 
and  our  Indians  soon  proved  to  be  three  men  from 
"  E  "  Company,  who,  like  ourselves,  had  been  on  a 
hunt,  and  were  looking  for  the  camp.  We  went  down 
to  them,  and  in  answer  to  their  inquiries  as  to  what 
what  we  were  up  there  for,  we  said  we  were  trying  to 
see  if  we  could  locate  the  camp. 

Here  was  a  chance  for  one  of  those  hair-breadth 
escapes  so  often  read  about,  and  I  have  no  doubt  but 
that  the  majority  of  them  are  about  as  dangerous  as 
ours  was. 

There  was  a  very  hard  thunder  shower  in  the 
evening,  and  of  course  we  men  got  wet,  but  we  have 
got  so  used  to  being  wet  that  it  is  no  hardship,  but  it 
is  a  little  disagreeable.  Marched  twenty  miles,  and 
camped  on  Red  Water  Creek. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        111 

CHAPTER  TWENTY-SIX. 

Patrol  Marches  Wearing  Down  Cavalry  Horses — Men  Are 

Impatient — Chief  Mule-Packer  Murdered  by  Rival 

— Command  Heads  Back  to  Tongue  River. 

JULY  12th,  I87&—  Broke  camp  this  morning  with 
rain  falling,  the  men  out  of  sorts  and  rations  getting 
low.  We  do  not  seem  to  be  doing  anything  likely  to 
get  results — merely  fooling  around  out  of  reach  of 
hostiles.  It  strikes  me  as  rather  queer  that  Colonel 
Otis  should  devote  so  much  time  to  visiting  aban 
doned  Indian  village  sites  instead  of  getting  in  actual 
contact  with  hostiles. 

We  are  now  to  head  back  to  the  camp  where  our 
wagon  train  is  parked,  whence  we  started  forth  on 
this  apparently  resultless  scouting  expedition.  We 
have  been  scouting  almost  six  days  and  are  so  near 
our  starting  point  that  we  can  reach  it  in  one  day. 

This  has  been  a  hard  trip  for  our  underfed  and 
travel-worn  horses.  To-day  my  horse  lagged  for  the 
first  time.  I  touched  him  with  the  spurs,  but  he  did 
not  respond ;  then  I  dismounted  and  led  him  behind 
the  command,  feeling  sorry  for  the  poor  fellow.  We 
came  in  sight  of  camp  when  three  miles  away,  and 
my  horse  was  rrore  than  three  hours  in  covering  the 
distance.  Several  times  I  thought  he  was  going  to 
fall  down  and  die. 

I  have  with  this  little  horse  kept  pace  with  my 
Captain  all  Summer,  and  he  has  had  two  large  horses 
at  his  disposal,  changing  mounts  nearly  every  alter 
nate  day,  so  I  think  my  mount  has  been  an  unusual 
ly  good  one.  The  Captain  is  a  great  hunter  and  a 
splendid  shot — I  think  the  best  in  the  whole  regiment, 
either  with  rifle  or  revolver.  When  out  hunting,  in 
addition  to  my  load,  my  horse  has  carried  an  Infantry 
rifle  with  ammunition,  for  the  Captain's  use,  and  I 
have  followed  him  on  many  a  wild  chase  in  pursuit  of 
game,  and  when  he  has  dismounted  to  take  a  shot, 


112       SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

I  have  invariably  been  ready  to  hand  him  his  gun  and 
hold  his  horse. 

Marched  41  miles  to-day. 

July  13th. — Broke  camp  at  8  o'clock  in  the  morn 
ing  and  took  our  own  trail  back  towards  Tongue 
River.  No  danger  of  finding  hostiles  on  this  trail ! 
Went  16  miles  and  camped  on  Cherry  Creek,  in  a 
poor  location.  However,  the  ground  is  too  rough  to 
drill  on. 

I  rode  my  Lieutenant's  extra  horse  to-day,  as  mine 
was  only  able  to  carry  itself.  The  men  said  I  looked 
like  a  mosquito  on  a  hay-stack,  and  I  guess  they  were 
right,  as  it  is  the  tallest  and  most  rangy  horse  with 
the  command.  I  need  a  step-ladder  to  mount  him 
with.  He  is  docile,  willing,  and  an  easy  rider. 

The  Captain  saw  a  bear  near  a  ravine,  about  one 
mile  from  the  trail,  and  calling  me  to  follow,  started 
for  the  game.  I  gave  the  big  horse  the  rein  and  a 
touch  of  the  spurs,  and  away  we  went.  The  bear  saw 
us  coming  and  turned  and  ran,  and  a  bear  can  run  ! 
We  fired  at  the  bear  with  our  revolvers  but  did  not 
hit  it,  so  it  did  not  stop  to  give  battle,  but  soon  was 
out  of  sight  in  the  ravine.  I  was  surprised  that  the 
big  horse  made  such  speed.  We  had  not  been  back 
in  line  long,  when  Colonel  Otis  rode  alongside  and 
asked  the  Captain  if  he  knew  if  Lieutenant  Mathey 
wanted  to  sell  that  horse.  Evidently  the  Colonel  was 
looking  for  a  horse  that  could  run ! 

July  14.— Were  in  the  saddle  at  7  A.  M.  I  rode 
the  Captain's  Indian  pony  Pete,  the  most  contrary 
piece  of  pony  I  ever  came  in  contact  with.  Could  not 
get  the  pony  started  when,  the  command  pulled  out 
but  after  giving  the  balky  beast  the  usual  medi 
cine  and  getting  its  nose  in  the  right  direction,  I  took 
after  the  troops,  and  the  pony  made  good  time. 

Marched  25  miles  and  camped  where  there  was 
excellent  grass  and  good  water  for  the  horses.  We 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       113 


remained  here  a  number  of  days,  then  marched  back 
to  our  former  camping  place  on  Sunday  Creek,  where 
a  few  days  were  given  to  drilling.  At  4  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  we  received  orders  to  report  at  Tongue 
River,  and  an  hour  later  were  on  the  way. 

At  about  8  o'clock,  while  the  troops  were  moving 
along  silently  and  quietly,  a  rifle  shot  rang  out.  All 
was  excitement,  and  officers  rode  hurridly  along,  to 
discover  who  had  fired  the  gun.  As  they  arrived  at 
the  back  end  of  the  line,  they  discovered  the  packers 
crowded  around  some  one  lying  on  the  ground,  and 
were  told  that  the  Chief  Packer  had  been  shot  in  the 
head  and  was  unconscious,  evidently  dying.  His  com 
rades  said  the  Chief  Packer  and  one  of  his  men  had 
some  words  about  the  way  the  packing  was  done 
and  had  called  each  other  hard  names.  Finally  the 
man  who  did  the  shooting,  swore  that  he  would  take 
the  position  of  Chief  Packer  when  the  pack  mules 
arrived  at  Tongue  River,  as  he  knew  more  about 
packing  than  any  other  man  with  the  outfit,  then  sud 
denly  wheeled  his  horse  about,  shot  the  Chief  Packer 
and  rode  off  in  the  darkness.  The  chum  of  the  dying 
man  a  moment  later,  gun  in  hand,  mounted  a  pony 
and  started  in  pursuit  of  the  assassin. 

The  murdered  man  left  a  wife  and  three  children 
in  one  of  the  larger  cities  of  Florida,  where  he  owned 
considerable  property.  Love  of  adventure,  and  a 
desire  to  investigate  the  mining  and  agriculturial 
inducements  of  the  North-West,  had  prompted  the 
adventure  that  culminated  in  this  dire  tragedy. 

The  body  was  rolled  in  a  blanket  and  placed  in  a 
shallow  grave  by  the  side  of  the  trail. 

The  affair  was  reported  to  General  Miles,  who  sent 
a  detail  with  an  ambulance  for  the  body,  which  was 
examined  by  the  surgeons,  enclosed  in  a  coffin,  and 
buried  in  the  Military  Cemetery  at  Tongue  River. 


114        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    TWENTY-SEVEN. 

Once  More  on  the  Yellowstone — General    Miles    Extends 

Aid  to  Destitue  Tribe  of  Indians — General  Sturges 

Fails  to  Accept  Challenge  of  Bold  Nez  Perces. 

WE  reached  the  bank  of  the  Yellowstone  river  at 
about  midnight,  and  it  being  too  dark  to  pitch  our 
tents,  we  were  ordered  to  unsaddle  and  rest  as  best 
we  could  until  morning.  So  off  came  the  saddles  and 
down  on  the  ground  went  the  whole  command,  glad 
to  get  a  chance  for  a  little  rest. 

Reveille  was  sounded  bright  and  early  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  after  a  hasty  breakfast  we  mount  and 
march  one  mile,  when  we  camp  on  Tongue  River, 
nearly  opposite  and  about  one  mile  from  the  head 
quarters  of  General  Miles. 

We  can  now  look  down  on  the  Tongue- River-ites, 
and  are  glad  once  more  to  be  where  we  can  see  some 
indications  of  civilization. 

The  location  of  the  Cantonment  at  Tongue  River 
was  the  selection  of  General  Miles,  and  does  credit 
to  his  knowledge  and  foresight. 

There  are  about  500  Cheyenne  Indians  camped 
near  the  Post.  They  are  under  the  personal  super 
vision  of  General  Miles.  I  am  told  that  it  was  only 
through  his  personal  exertions  that  the  warriors  of 
these  Indians  were  prevented  from  taking  the  war 
path,  some  time  ago,  when  the  man  in  charge  of  the 
Agency  failed  to  pay  the  annuity  due  them  from  the 
Government.  The  chiefs  complained  to  General  Miles 
that  the  man  in  charge  of  the  Agency  at  the  time  was 
"  Heap  cheat."  Miles  appealed  in  their  behalf  direct 
to  the  Government  at  Washington,  and  was  told  the 
appropriation  for  these  Indians  had  been  exhausted. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        115 

He  supplied  their  needs  from  his   own   scanty  stores, 
and  told  them  he  would  see  that  they  did  not  suffer. 

The  command  remained  in  this  camp  several  days 
and  then  General  Sturges  was  ordered  to  take  six 
companies  of  the  Seventh  Cavalry  and  head  Chief 
Joseph  off  from  his  attempt  to  escape  into  the  great 
wilderness  north  of  the  nation's  boundary  line. 

The  hardships  of  our  Indian  campaign  now  began 
in  earnest.  We  made  forced  marches  and  got  in 
ahead  of  Chief  Joseph  and  his  warriors  and  tribe's 
people  generally,  at  the  foot  of  the  Little  Rocky 
Mountains,  in  Montana  Territory,  Sept.  ^8th,  1877. 
Here  General  Sturges  halted  his  command,  and  it 
seemed  that  he  wanted  the  Indians  to  take  the 
offensive.  The  reds  advanced  and  a  slight  skirmish 
ensued,  and  instead  of  leading  a  charge,  Sturges 
posted  himself  on  a  bluff,  with  a  body  guard,  fully  a 
mile  from  the  reds,  and  viewed  proceedings  through 
his  field  glass.  A  bullet  from  a  long-range  gun  in  the 
hands  of  an  Indian  who  knew  how  to  shoot,  struck 
the  ground  a  short  distance  in  front  of  the  General, 
who  lowered  his  glass,  remarking  that  it  was  getting 
dangerous  up  there,  and  got  out  of  danger. 

At  this  time  Lieutenant  Hare  went  personally  to 
Major  Merrill,  and  asked  permission  to  lead  his 
company  in  a  charge  against  the  hostiles  ;  but,  of 
course,  the  request  was  refused.  Prompt  action  was 
what  the  men  of  the  Old  Seventh  wanted.  They  all 
felt  that  if  "  turned  loose,"  they  could  and  would 
clean  out  Chief  Joseph  and  his  warriors  in  short 
order. 

Our  loss  in  the  long  distance  skirmish,  which 
lasted  but  a  few  minutes,  was  three  men  slightly 
wounded ;  the  enemy  loss  was  about  the  same.  Their 
long-range  rifles  are  much  more  effective  than  our 
short-range  carbines,  unless  we  get  in  close  quarters- 


116        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

The  number  of  warriors  with  Joseph,  and  also  the 
non-compatants,  are  much  less  than  he  had  when 
he  started  on  his  projected  break  for  the  Canadian 
wilds.  The  patrol  work  of  United  States  troops  is 
bewildering  to  the  militant  Indian  chiefs,  and  the 
young  bucks  are  not  leaving  reservations  for  the 
"  war-path "  in  any  considerable  numbers.  The 
reds  under  Sitting  Bull  and  Crazy  Horse  have  found 
"  scalp  hunting  "  poor  business,  and  are  dwindling. 

But  why  prolong  the  unequal  contest ! 

After  Chief  Joseph  had  passed  through  the  Gap  in 
the  Mountains,  General  Sturges  marched  our  force 
around  a  range  of  the  mountains,  and  then,  permitting 
the  retreating  Indians  to  again  get  away,  followed 
after  them.  We  camped  several  nights  where  they 
had  camped  the  night  before.  At  each  camping  place 
the  reds  had  erected  breastworks,  prepared  to  give  us 
battle. 

If  this  is  a  war  of  attrition,  they  were  getting  the 
food  and  we  were  getting  appetites.  Rations  ran 
short,  until  we  had  nothing  to  eat  but  buffalo  meat 
and  bull-cherries.  Finally  we  got  where  we  could  get 
neither  buffalo  meat  nor  bull-cherries.  Then  we 
butchered  Indian  ponies.  This  meat  was  good. 

General  Sturges  issued  a  bombastic  card  of  thanks 
and  as  the  document  was  being  read  by  the  Adjutant 
you  could  hear  men  say,  "  We  do  not  want  wind 
pudding ;  give  us  something  solid !"  General  Sturges 
sent  to  General  Howard  for  rations  and  Howard  sent 
us  ammunition.  A  day  later  a  wagon  train  arrived 
from  Fort  Peck,  with  rations.  Instead  of  hard  bread 
they  brought  flour,  and  salt  pork  that  was  spoiled. 
Each  man  was  issued  a  quart  of  flour  and  a  chunk  of 
pork.  We  made  flap-jacks.  Taking  a  tin  cup  and 
partly  filling  it  with  wheat  flour,  we  would  add  water 
and  make  a  paste,  and  then  add  a  piece  of  pork,  and 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         111 

cook  the  mess.  It  was  difficult  to  dig  it  out  of  the 
cup.  It  was  worse  than  hard-tack  and  ancient  bacon. 

Sturges  with  six  companies,  every  soldier  fight 
ing  mad,  loitered  along.  But  when  Miles  was  given 
the  "  right  of  way,"  he  pressed  after  the  fugitive  reds, 
headed  them  off  and  forced  Chief  Joseph  to  surrender, 
after  a  hard  fighting  that  lasted  three  days. 

I  was  mighty  glad  to  be  "  on  the  job  "  at  the  Battle 
of  Snake  River,  and  so  were  my  comrades  of  Com 
pany  M,  Seventh  Cavalry. 

Son  e  time  before  this  event,  while  with  Sturges, 
I  was  ordered  to  take  a  despatch  to  General 
Miles,  and  was  to  go  alone  over  unknown  land,  liable 
at  any  moment  to  meet  hostiles.  I  could  not  refuse 
to  make  the  venture.  Better  lose  my  scalp  than  to 
get  the  name  of  being  a  coward. 

Receiving  the  necessary  instructions  as  to  route 
and  provided  with  a  compass,  at  dusk  I  set  forth  on 
the  hazardous  ride.  To  say  that  I  was  startled  at 
every  little  sound,  would  be  putting  it  very  mild.  But 
I  kept  on  and  arrived  at  my  destination  about  noon 
the  next  day.  Never  did  a  camp  look  so  good  to  me 
as  that  one  did.  And  never  again  do  I  want  to  take 
such  a  trip.  It  was  over  bluffs,  along  ravines,  across 
stretches  of  prairie,  expecting  to  get  a  bullet  from 
the  gun  of  a  lurking  hostile  at  any  moment.  It  is  no 
wonder  that  at  the  age  of  twenty-four  my  hair  is 
streaked  with  gray. 


118      SEVENTH  CAV  ALRY 

CHAPTER  TWENTY-EIGHT. 

Graphic  Account  of  Battle  Between  NezPerces  and  Troops 

Commanded  by  General  Miles — Chief  Joseph  Forced 

to  Yield  Emphasizes  Dislike  for  Gen.  Howard. 

THE  general  interest  in  the  battle  between  Nez 
Perces  warriors  led  by  Chief  Joseph,  and  the  Cavalry 
force  with  General  Miles  in  Command,  and  the 
surrender  of  the  hostiles,  demands  more  attention 
than  ever  has  appeared  in  print.  It  was  the  finale  of 
an  important  campaign ;  it  threw  wide  open  the 
door  that  had  blocked  the  way  for  the  settlement  of 
the  Great  North- West ;  it  stopped  trespassing  on  the 
soil  of  a  friendly  nation  by  disgruntled  natives  of  this 
country — our  wards,  not  wanted  there,  whose  best 
interests  demanded  that  they  should  cease  savagery 
and  live  in  peace  with  their  white  neighbors. 

When  Chief  Joseph  started  forth  on  this  final  and 
fateful  campaign,  he  was  in  command  of  a  large  force 
of  superior  and  well  equipped  Indian  warriors.  With 
these  hostiles,  it  was  a  most  sacred  war.  From  the 
time  they  left  their  homes  in  Oregon  until  they 
were  attacked  by  the  command  of  General  Miles  on 
Snake  Creek,  they  had  traveled  sixteen  hundred  miles 
and  at  a  rate  that  would  have  killed  a  cavalry  horse. 

This  was  a  wonderful  trip.  Chief  Joseph  did  not 
make  it  with  warriors  alone.  He  had  with  him  all 
the  squaws,  children  and  aged  males  of  the  tribe, 
their  tepees  and  other  belongings.  Joseph's  movements 
were  retarded,  and  at  times  diverted,  by  strong 
bodies  of  United  States  troops.  He  was  able  and 
shrewd,  and  was  keen  in  leading  pursuing  columns 
along  trails  where  their  men  and  horses  would  suffer 
most  for  want  of  food  and  water. 

Chief  Joseph's  warriors  had  dwindled  to  about 
three  hundred ;  every  one  of  them  hardened  by  the 
difficulties  of  the  march,  able  to  go  days  without  food 
or  water,  and  each  brave  carrying  a  gun  made  Jfor 
use  in  hunting  large  game.  They  also  had  a  number 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        119 


of  long  range  needle-guns,  two  of  them  being  sup 
plied  with  the  most  approved  telescope  sights.  One 
of  the  rifles  was  a  heavy  Creedmore,  such  as  is  used 
by  the  most  skilful  shots  in  America  on  the  celebrat 
ed  ranges.  No  doubt  it  was  one  of  these  rifles  that 
sent  that  bullet  in  the  direction  of  General  Sturges, 
during  the  brief  skirmish  at  the  Gap  in  the  Moun 
tains,  which  caused  him  to  lower  his  field-glass  and 
step  out  of  range. 

The  failure  of  General  Howard  to  land  Chief 
Joseph,  is  said  to  be  due  to  the  fact  that  Howard 
started  on  the  chase  with  his  command  not  half  sup 
plied  with  equipment  necessary  for  such  a  drive. 
As  a  result,  Howard's  movements  were  hampered  and 
his  fighting  strength  greatly  reduced  at  the  time  when 
his  force  should  have  been  at  its  very  best. 

General  Howard  was  not  versed  in  Indian  warfare. 
He  found  there  is  a  vast  difference  between  Agency- 
life  and  its  treaty  making  and  fighting  Indians.  It  was 
Howard's  lack  of  tact  that  impelled  Joseph  and  his 
brother  White  Bird  and  the  rest  of  the  Nez  Perces  to 
reject  the  demand  of  Howard.  They  did  not  want 
to  fight ;  they  wanted  to  escape  to  a  land  of  refuge, 
where  they  could  live  in  peace.  This  is  the  Indians' 
side  of  the  story. 

Chief  Joseph  continued  on  his  retreat  through  the 
northern  mountains.  On  August  9th  General  Gibbons 
came  into  ineffectual  contact  with  him  at  the  Big 
Hole  Mountains. 

When  General  Miles  started  from  the  mouth  of 
Tongue  River,  September  18th,  to  attack  Chief 
Jeseph,  he  had  formed  his  plans  so  well  that  victory 
was  assured.  He  struck  Chief  Joseph's  camp  the  30th 
of  September,  1877,  after  marching  twelve  days,  at 
the  very  place  he  said  he  would  before  setting  out 


120        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

from  Tongue  River.  The  men  under  Miles  were 
eager  for  the  fray.  As  soon  as  the  Indians  were  seen 
General  Miles,  without  hesitation,  placed  himself  in 
front  of  the  troops,  and  at  once  the  first  order  was 
given.  It  was : — 

" CHARGE  IT 

The  battle  was  on ! 

Ahead  went  our  three  companies  of  the  Seventh 
Cavalry,  direct  for  the  Indians,  each  man  trying  to 
be  the  first  to  draw  blood. 

Never  was  a  more  gallant  charge  made  by  any 
troops. 

The  Second  Cavalry  had  been  ordered  to  round 
up  and  look  after  the  ponies  of  the  reds,  and  this 
placed  the  burden  of  the  fight  on  the  three  companies 
of  the  Seventh  Cavalry.  The  charges  on  the  reds 
and  on  their  ponies  were  simultaneous. 

Two  men  reel  in  their  saddles  and  fall  to  the 
ground  at  the  beginning  of  the  charge.  There  is  no 
faltering,  spurs  hasten  to  the  utmost  the  speed  of  the 
horses.  We  soon  come  to  where  the  ground  is  so 
cut  up  by  natural  rifle-pits  that  our  horses  can  ad 
vance  no  further.  The  Indians  are  firing  rapidly ; 
our  men  are  responding. 

Halt ! — is  the  shrill  bugle  command. 

Then  Dismount  /—and  Prepare  to  Fight  on  Foot ! 

And  this  is  what  was  done,  and  with  as  much 
coolness  as  though  we  were  on  parade,  instead  of 
being  where  bullets  are  whistling. 

As  soon  as  our  men  dismount  the  carbines  begin 
to  talk  to  the  Indians  so  fast  and  with  such  good 
results,  that  the  fire  of  the  reds  slackens,  as  they  take 
to  cover,  but  soon  they  arefiring  more  rapidly  than 
before. 

General  Miles  gave  orders  for  the  men  to  shelter 
themselves  as  much  as  they  could  and  to  make  their 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        121 


shots  count.  Men  got  behind  anything  that  would 
afford  the  least  shelter,  and  some  dug  into  the  earth 
with  entrenching  tools.  We  lay  there  and  shot  at 
every  moving  thing  seen  above  the  tops  of  the  breast 
works  of  the  reds.  There  are  many  men  in  the 
command  who  never  before  were  under  fire,  and  they 
are  as  aggressive  and  cool  as  the  veterans. 

A  man  falls  on  the  right  of  the  line — or,  rather, 
rises  and  then  falls !  He  was  lying  down  when  a 
rifle  bullet  hit  him  in  the  shoulder.  He  springs 
to  his  feet  in  agony,  and  instantly  falls,  and  rolls 
behind  a  little  pile  of  dirt,  and  tries  to  grasp  his 
carbine,  but  he  cannot  do  so  with  hands  benumbed, 
and  sinks  back  as  though  dead  ! 

There  he  lies  until  darkness  makes  it  safe  for 
comrades  to  go  to  his  relief.  He  was  found  alive, 
and  taken  to  the  hospital  tent  on  a  stretcher,  where 
the  Surgeon  dressed  the  wound  and  he  soon  became 
conscious.  It  is  Private  Deitline,  of  Company  M. 
The  Surgeon  says  he  is  badly  wounded,  but  will  pull 
through  all  right.  Good,  for  we  all  like  him  ;  he  is 
our  Company  Farrier. 

Other  wounded  men  are  taken  to  the  hospital. 
We  soon  get  over  the  nausea  at  first  caused  by  the 
sight  of  wounds  and  blood,  and  assist  in  caring  for 
the  injured. 

The  First  Sergeant  of  Company  M  is  found  dead, 
shot  through  the  lungs,  while  in  the  front  row  of  little 
ditches  our  men  had  dug  in  order  to  press  closer  to 
the  entrenched  Indians ;  he  is  the  man  who  declared 
when  bidding  his  wife  and  children  good-bye,  as 
our  force  left  Fort  Rice  last  Spring,  that  he  had  a 
presentment  that  they  would  not  see  him  again. 

The  body  was  placed  in  a  grave,  over  which  a 
volley  was  fired. 

During  the  battle,  Lieutenant  Eckerson  with  a  few 
men  distinguished  themselves,  when  horses  attached 


122        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

to  the  mountain  howitzer  were  shot  while  the  piece 
was  being  hauled  into  position.  The  Lieutenant 
leaped  from  his  horse,  cut  the  traces,  helped  the  men 
place  the  gun  in  position,  and  fired  shot  after  shot. 

Trumpeter  Herwood  saved  the  life  of  his  Captain 
and  thereby  came  near  sacrificing  his  own.  He  saw 
an  Indian  taking  careful  aim  at  the  Captain,  and  de 
liberately  stepped  in  front  of  his  officer  receiving  the 
bullet  in  his  own  side.  When  bringing  in  the  wounded 
we  found  Harwood  lying  on  the  ridge  where  he  had 
fallen,  and  told  Surgeon  Havre  that  the  man  was  so 
badly  wounded  that  we  feared  he  would  bleed  to 
death  while  being  carried  to  the  hospital.  The  Sur 
geon  made  examination  and  said :  "  He  can't  live ; 
take  in  those  who  have  a  chance  to  recover."  The 
next  morning,  while  being  attended  to  at  the  hospital 
tent  by  Surgeon  Havre,  Trumpeter  Herwood  said :  "  I 
am  the  man  you  left  on  the  ridge  to  die  !  If  you  are 
going  to  probe  my  wound  with  a  finger,  as  you  did 
last  night,  please  cut  the  nail  off !" 

We  dug  rifle  pits,  both  day  and  night  and 
got  nearer  and  nearer  the  enemy.  Chief  Joseph's 
entire  camp  was  surrounded  the  first  day  of  the 
fight,  but  that  was  not  enough  to  make  him  yield. 
He  had  sufficient  food  and  ammunition  for  a  siege. 

On  ascertaining  this  fact,  after  Chief  Joseph  had 
refused  to  surrender,  General  Miles  had  a  series  of 
rifle  pits  dug  that  cut  off  the  water  supply  of  the  reds. 
Chief  Joseph  was  not  slow  to  discover  this  fact,  and 
seeing  that  he  could  not  possibly  escape  from  the  trap 
he  was  in,  or  defeat  the  white  force,  he  held  a  council 
at  which  it  was  decided  to  surrender  to  General 
Miles !  This  emphasized  their  dislike  for  General 
Howard,  the  Department  Commander,  to  whom  they 
attributed  the  troubles  that  had  started  them  afield. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS     123 

CHAPTER  TWENTY-NINE. 

Cavalrymen    Cheer  When  a  White  Cloth  is  Displayed  by 

Hostiles — Chief  Joseph  Hands  His  Rifle  to  Gen.  Miles 

—White  Bird  Takes  Flight— Our  Wounded. 

WHEN  the  Nez  Perces  war  chiefs  decided  to  make 
the  surrender  to  General  Miles,  Chief  Joseph  had  a 
piece  of  white  cloth  displayed  and  came  to  to  our 
headquarters,  all  alcne.  He  was  received  by  General 
Miles,  and  in  a  subdued  voice  said  his  chiefs  and 
warriors  wanted  to  surrender. 

How  we  did  cheer  when  that  piece  of  white  cloth 
appeared !  Our  work  was  done— and  well  done,  too  ! 

General  Howard  had  arrived  on  the  scene  while 
the  battle  was  in  progress,  accompanied  by  an  escort 
of  seventeen  men.  He  commended  General  Miles,  say 
ing  in  what  seemed  a  rather  bombastic  manner  :— 

"  General,  I  find  everything  all  right.  This  is  your 
fight,  and  I  want  to  say  amen  to  everything  that  you 
have  done." 

But  notice  the  difference  in  tone  of  the  report  of 
the  matter  issued  by  General  Howard,  and  the  gener 
al  order  of  General  Miles,  printed  in  the  Chapter  that 
follows. 

While  Chief  Joseph  was  on  his  way  to  meet 
General  Miles,  at  the  time  he  surrendered,  he  passed 
by  General  Howard  without  paying  any  attention  to 
to  him,  and  walked  deliberately  up  to  Miles  and 
said :  "  I  WANT  TO  SURRENDER  TO  YOU !" 

As  the  noted  Indian  stood  there  a  self-acknow 
ledged  prisoner,  rifle  in  hand,  his  bearing  was  calm 
and  deliberate,  he  was  indeed  A  BRAVE  ! 

Chief  Joseph  is  about  thirty-five  years  of  age,  five 
feet  ten  inches  in  height.  His  clothing  consisted  of 
blanket-trousers,  beaded  leggins,  beaded  buckskin 
moccasins,  and  a  fine  blanket.  His  features  are 
regular,  his  black  eyes  are  as  piercing  as  an  eagle's. 


124       SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

His  long  black  hair  is  gathered  in  a  loose  braid  at 
the  back  of  his  head,  his  scalp-lock  is  ornamented 
with  a  cluster  of  feathers,  and  long  braids  hang  in 
front  of  his  ears. 

Such  is  the  young  man,  who  for  a  long  time  had 
bid  defiance  to  what  he  considered  unjust  and  oppres 
sive  mandates  on  the  part  of  the  Government  of  the 
United  States,  and  who  had  repulsed  in  turn  military 
forces  commanded  by  Howard,  Sturges,  and  Gibbons, 
and  for  three  days  had  held  out  against  General 
Miles. 

As  he  addressed  General  Miles,  he  handed  the 
General  his  rifle,  with  the  muzzle  pointed  towards  the 
ground.  When  the  weapon  had  thus  changed  hands 
the  Chief  stepped  to  one  side,  saying  "How !"  as  he 
did  so.  Then  several  other  chiefs  and  warriors  who 
had  followed  Chief  Joseph,  as  in  ceremonial  order, 
advanced  one  at  a  time,  each  surrendering  his  rifle  to 
General  Miles. 

To  those  privileged  to  witness  this  remarkable 
scene,  it  did  not  seem  as  if  these  captives  were 
savages.  Surely,  they  were  Knights  of  the  plains  and 
mountains  and  forests.  Fairly  defeated,  they  sur 
rendered  their  weapons ;  not  lances  and  shields,  but 
death-dealing  rifles,  the  very  best  that  American  in 
ventors  were  able  to  produce. 

The  ceremony  of  surrender,  one  the  part  of  the 
Indians,  began  at  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  on  the  5th 
day  of  October,  1877,  and  it  continued  in  the  same 
deliberate  manner  till  the  close  of  day.  From  time 
to  time  Indians  left  their  rifle  pits,  singly  or  in  small 
groups,  and  coming  to  the  headquarters  of  General 
Miles  gave  themselves  up  as  prisoners  of  war.  Even 
when  night  set  in,  the  entire  band  had  not  given 
themselves  up,  and  our  lines  of  sentinels  were  kept 
posted.  When  the  sun  appeared  next  morning  the 
surrenders  were  continued. 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        125 


The  first  day  67  warrior  and  their  squaws  and 
children  came  in,  the  next  day  the  number  was 
increased  to  290  men,  women  and  children.  Then  we 
took  possession  of  their  trenches  and  camp.  Forty 
wounded  Indians  were  discovered.  They  were  being 
cared  for  by  squaws.  Only  two  dead  Indians  were 
located.  The  disposition  they  had  made  of  their  dead 
remained  a  mystery.  We  were  certain  that  thirty  or 
more  warriors  were  killed  outright  when  we  made 
our  first  charge,  and  they  lost  many  more  during  the 
progress  of  the  engagement. 

"  White  Bird "  failed  to  appear  with  the  other 
reds,  and  could  not  be  located — he  had  flown. 

Our  loss  was  two  officers  and  twenty-six  men 
killed  and  four  officers  and  forty -two  men  wounded. 

I  sustained  an  injury  to  my  back,  which  seemed 
of  little  moment,  and  caused  me  practically  no  trouble 
for  some  time,  but  later  developed  spinal  trouble 
of  so  serious  a  nature  that  one  side  was  partly  and 
my  legs  entirely  paralyzed.  While  on  scout  duty 
with  a  detail,  in  going  down  a  mountain,  my  horse 
stumbled,  sending  me  headlong,  and  in  falling  the 
horse  landed  across  my  body.  I  was  soon  back  in 
the  saddle  and  continued  with  the  detail. 

The  Indians  having  surrendered,  the  next  thing  to 
be  done  was  to  provide  transportation  and  convey 
our  sick  and  wounded  to  the  Missouri  river.  There 
were  only  three  ambulances  with  the  command,  and 
more  than  forty  wounded  to  be  carried.  A  number 
of  the  heavy,  jolting  army  wagons  were  requistioned, 
and  also  travoys  made  on  which  to  carry  the  wound 
ed.  A  travoy  is  made  by  fastening  a  long  pole  on 
each  side  of  a  pony,  with  the  ends  on  the  ground, 
with  a  piece  of  heavy  canvass  swung  hammock-like 
between  the  poles.  It  is  a  crude  device  and  a  source 
of  constant  torture  to  a  patient  as  it  is  jolted  along. 


126     SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

The  journey  to  the  Missouri  river  ended  October 
20th,  when  our  sick  and  wounded  were  transferred  by 
a  steamboat  to  military  hospitals  at  Forts  Rice,  Lin 
coln  and  Buford  for  treatment. 

The  captive  Nez  Perces  were  taken  to  Bismarck, 
and  paraded  through  the  main  street  of  the  city,  with 
Chief  Joseph  on  an  Indian  pony  in  the  lead.  He  was 
"  honor  guest "  at  a  banquet  given  that  evening,  and 
conducted  himself  with  dignity  and  reserve. 

These  Indians  were  for  some  time  kept  on  exhibi 
tion  at  Bismarck,  and  then  were  placed  in  cars  and 

shipped  to  Fort  Leavenworth,  Kansas. 

***** 

Sergeant  McDermott,  who  was  killed  at  the  Battle 
of  Snake  Creek,  was  a  gentleman.  He  was  liked  by 
all  the  men  in  his  Company,  and  respected  by  officers 
and  men  throught  the  Regiment. 

He  was  honorably  discharged  in  June,  by  reason 
of  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  enlistment.  He  at 
once  re-enlisted  and  took  a  furlough  for  three  months 
to  visit  relatives  and  friends  in  the  East.  While  there 
enjoying  himself,  he  learned  that  his  Regiment  was 
to  take  part  in  a  strenuous  campaign  against  the 
Indians.  With  true  soldier  spirit,  he  threw  up  his 
furlough  and  hastened  to  join  his  Company,  which  he 
reached  in  July.  Asked  by  a  comrade  why  he  did 
not  stay  his  time  out,  Sergeant  McDermott  said  :— 

"  If  the  boys  are  in  for  a  fight,  I  want  to  be  with 
them.  When  the  campaign  is  over,  I  will  take 
another  furlough  and  go  and  finish  my  visit." 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        127 


CHAPTER    THIRTY. 

General  Howard's  Report  of  Operations  Against  and   the 

Surrender    of    the    Nez    Perces    Indians — Order  of 

General  Miles  Who  Led  Victorious  Command. 

THE  documents  that  follow,  form  a  part  of  the 
historical  record  of  the  War  with  the  Nez  Perces, 
and  deserve  the  most  careful  perusal  by  all  readers. 
They  have  been  discussed  in  the  public  press,  and 
for  obvious  reasons : 

REPORT   OF   GENERAL   HOWARD. 

In  the  Field,  Steamer  Benton, 

Missouri  River,  Oct.  10,  1877. 
General  P.  H.  Sheridan, 

Commanding  Division  of  the  Missouri : — 

It  is  due  you,  as  commander  of  this  military  divis 
ion,  to  know  the  facts  that  I  have  already  telegraphed 
to  General  McDowell  from  the  battlefield  concerning 
the  final  operations  and  surrender  of  the  Nez  Perces. 

First,  on  the  llth  of  September  I  assumed  com 
mand  of  General  Sturges's  troops  after  I  had  passed 
him  at  Clarke's  Fork,  and  he  operated  in  conjunction 
with  my  force  proper  till  the  close. 

The  advance,  Sturges  immediately  commanding, 
then  made  a  forced  march  of  eighty-five  miles  in  two 
days,  struck  the  hostiles,  captured  quite  a  number  of 
their  ponies,  killed  and  wounded  several  warriors 
and  drove  them  beyond  the  Musselshell. 

The  12th  of  September  I  sent  from  Clarke's  Forks, 
a  despatch  to  General  Miles  showing  him  that  the 
Indians  were  making  for  the  Musselshell  country  by 
exceedingly  long  marches,  and  urging  unusual  acti 
vity,  and  requesting  him  to  make  every  effort  in  his 
power  to  prevent  the  escape  of  the  hostile  band. 
General  Miles  received  the  despatch  at  Tongue  River 
on  the  evening  of  the  16th,  and  promptly  moved  his 


128        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

command — two  battalions  of  the  Second  and  Seventh 
Cavalry,  and  one — his  own  mounted  Infantry — on 
the  17th,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Musselshell  River. 

Meanwhile,  as  he  requested  nine  days  to  get  into 
position,  I  slowed  my  march  to  about  fifteen  miles  a 
day,  knowing  that  the  hostiles  were  watching  me  and 
would  do  the  same.  They  slackened  their  pace  after 
crossing  the  Missouri  at  Cow  Island. 

As  soon  as  Miles  found  out  that  they  were  beyond 
the  Missouri  he  crossed  where  he  was,  and  made 
forced  marches  across  our  front  to  the  north  of  Bear 
Paw  Mountain,  and  struck  the  Indians  about  seven 
o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  30th  ult.  They  were  cam  ped 
near  a  creek  bottom,  in  a  strong  natural  position,  but 
their  numerous  ponies,  (now  nearly  worn  out),  were 
scattered  over  the  open  country  grazing. 

Miles  charged  the  camp  and  herd  simultaneously 
A  desperate  fight  occurred,  in  which  two  officers  and 
twenty -five  men  were  killed,  and  four  officers  and 
forty-two  men  wounded. 

The  ponies  were  nearly  all  captured — some  seven 
hundred ;  but  the  Indians,  hemmed  in  by  Miles's 
pickets,  held  out  until  after  my  arrival,  (firing  was 
then  going  on),  the  evening  of  the  fourth.  I  had  with 
me  two  friendly  Nez  Perces  and  an  interpreter.  The 
two  Nez  Perces  were  sent  the  next  morning  into  the 
hostile  camp.  Through  them  the  surrender  was 
arranged.  A  few  Indians,  including  White  Bird, 
crept  through  the  lines  during  the  night. 

A  portion  of  my  artillery  and  infantry  and 
Sturges's  cavalry  were  brought  up  within  twenty -five 
miles  of  the  battlefield ;  but  as  the  Sioux  under 
Sitting  Bull  continued  quiet,  I  deemed  it  best,  on 
account  of  the  difficulty  of  supplying  the  command, 
to  return  the  foot  troops  to  the  Missouri. 

Sturges's  cavalry  were  ordered  to  report  back  to 


FIGHTING    INDIANS     129 

General  Miles,  and  moved  in  conjunction  with  him 
back  to  the  mouth  of  the  Musselshell. 

I  embarked  my  troops  on  the  steamer  Benton.  On 
account  of  Sitting  Bull's  proximity,  I  delayed  their 
departure  from  the  10th  to  the  13th,  until  Miles,  bur 
dened  with  the  wounded  and  the  Indian  prisoners— 
375  in  number — had  reached  the  Missouri. 

Colonel  Sturges  and  his  regiment  deserve  special 
credit  for  energetic,  persistent  and  successful  work. 

General  Miles  and  his  command  have  and  deserve 
the  great  honor  of  the  final  battle  and  surrender, 
while  appreciation  and  gratitude  are  due  our-  officers 
and  men  who  engaged  the  hostiles  in  Idaho,  have 
cheerfully  made  forced  marches  for  1,600  miles, 
were  part  of  the  last  operating  force  north  of  the 
Missouri,  and  were  represented  by  their  commander 
at  the  surrender. 

I  directed  General  Miles  to  keep  the  prisoners  till 
next  Spring,  it  being  too  late  to  send  them  to  Idaho 
by  direct  routes  this  Fall  and  too  costly  by  steamer 
or  rail. 

[Signed,]  0.  0.  HOWARD, 

Commanding  Department. 


ORDER    OF   GENERAL  MILES. 

In  the  Field, 
Camp  Near  Bear  Paw  Mountain,  M.  T. 

October  7th,  1877. 
[General  Orders  No.  3J 

The  commanding  officer  takes  great  pleasure  in 
expressing  to  his  command  his  congratulations 
for  the  recent  exhibition  they  have  given 
of  the  highest  degree  of  endurance  under  hard 
ship,  and  unyielding  fortitude  in  battle.  The  secret 
forced  marches  that  enabled  you  to  surprise  the  en- 


130       SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

emy  when  in  fancied  security,  the  resistless  charge 
that  at  once  shut  them  in  the  fastness  of  their  camp, 
and  the  courageous  fight,  with  death  and  maiming 
thick  about  you,  are  all  your  own. 

In  the  entire  success  that  has  attended  your 
efforts,  the  capture  of  Chief  Joseph  and  his  followers, 
the  entire  country  will  share,  with  gratitude  to  you 
who  have  accomplished  so  much. 

It  is  an  added  source  of  congratulation  that  Gen 
eral  0.  O.  Howard,  who  has  so  persistently  waged 
war  against  these  hostile  Nez  Perces  and  driven 
them  from  the  slope  of  the  Pacific  to  this  remote 
country,  was  present  to  witness  the  completion  of  his 
arduous  and  thankless  undertaking. 

[Signed,]  N.  A.  MILES, 

General  in  Command. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         131 


CHAPTER    THIRTY-ONE. 

Disabled  Men  Taken  to  Hospital  at  Fort  Rice — Many  Are 
jv,      Weary  Days — Hospital  Staff  Commended — The 
Hardest  Feature  of  Military  Life. 

WHILE  we  were  on  the  way  to  the  Missouri  river, 
I  was  at  times  in  great  distress,  due  to  the  injury 
to  my  back  sustained  when  my  horse  fell  on  me,  as 
heretofore  noted.  Our  Surgeon  gave  me  a  "  going 
over  "  when  we  reached  the  river,  and  told  me  that 
I  must  accompany  the  wounded  to  a  hospital— that 
only  rest  and  the  best  of  care  would  prevent  complete 
collapse.  He  booked  me  for  a  steamboat  ride  down 
the  Missouri  along  with  my  sick  and  wounded  com. 
rades. 

After  a  long  and  tedious  ride  on  board  the  steam 
boat,  we  arrive  at  Fort  Rice,  and  the  injured  who 
could  do  so  walked  to  the  army  hospital,  the  others 
being  carried  on  stretchers.  We  were  not  a  nice 
looking  lot.  We  were  soon  arranged  in  the  ward 
and  once  more  greet  Surgeon  Taylor,  who  visits  each 
man,  washes  and  dresses  wounds,  sees  that  proper 
medicines  are  provided,  and  those  that  cannot  wash 
themselves  are  bathed  and  that  all  are  provided 
with  clean  under  garments.  He  is  ably  assisted  by 
Steward  VonClausen  and  three  nurses  from  the 
Infantry. 

Assistant  Steward  Gallenne,  who  was  shot  in  his 
left  ankle  during  our  last  fight  with  the  Indians,  had 
the  leg  arnputed.  He  had  a  cot  next  to  mine.  We 
agreed  that  if  Sturges  and  Howard  had  pushed  on 
instead  of  taking  it  easy,  they  could  have  whipped 
Chief  Joseph  before  he  struck  the  Fork,  and  that  if 
they  had  done  so  Gallenne  would  now  be  a  leg  ahead 
and  that  my  back  and  legs  would  not  have  been 
rendered  useless. 


132        SEVENTH  CAVALRY 

We  sat  on  our  cots  and  talked  over  our  army  ex 
periences,  and  acclaimed  General  Custer  and  General 
Miles  as  our  ideals  of  what  commanders  sent  out  to 
end  an  Indian  uprising  should  be. 

As  the  days  passed,  and  hospital  patients  began 
to  recover,  we  resorted  to  various  sources  of  amuse 
ment.  Trumpeter  Harwood,  or  Doctor  Scroggs,  was 
a  tremendous  success — he  was  a  combined  circus 
and  menagerie.  He  is  the  man  shot  through  the 
shoulder,  whe  was  left  on  the  battlefield  to  die  after 
the  surgeon  said  he  could  not  live  to  be  taken  to  the 
hospital,  at  our  battle  with  Chief  Joseph.  There  was 
not  a  place  in  the  hospital  that  he  did  not  visit.  He 
would  go  around,  feeling  the  pulses  of  different  men, 
get  off  comical  remarks  in  explaining  the  disease  or 
wound ;  to  one  he  would  prescribe  a  quart  or  more 
of  whiskey,  to  another  a  promotion,  to  another  a 
sutlership,  to  another  a  perpetual  furlough  under 
full  pay,  etc.  He  would  get  men  to  laughing  whom 
he  found  despondent. 

Dr.  Scroggs  was  as  solemn  as  the  proverbial  deacon 
when  Surgeon  Taylor  was  in  the  ward. 

Then  there  was  McCurren,  who  was  shot  in  the 
hand  and  had  also  lost  a  finger,  and  always  told  the 
Surgeon  that  the  hand  was  so  stiff  and  sore  he  could 
not  use  it,  yet  as  soon  as  the  Surgeon  had  crossed  the 
parade  to  his  quarters,  he  would  grab  a  broom  and 
go  through  the  manual  of  arms  without  flinching.  He 
was  stiff  and  sore  for  a  discharge,  and  he  got  it,  too ! 

Blacksmith  Deitline  was  shot  in  the  right  shoulder 
—he  is  the  man  who  sprang  to  his  feet  at  the  time  he 
was  shot — and  he  was  severely  wounded  in  the  head 
afterwards  by  a  chance  bullet  as  he  lay  on  the 
ground.  He  would  tell  the  Surgeon  how  he  felt,  and 
say  he  was  not  able  to  raise  his  arm,  and  asking  the 
Surgeon  if  he  thought  its  use  would  ever  be  restored, 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        133 

he  would  work  the  arm  as  much  as  he  could,  the 
while  wincing  with  pain.  He  was  not  working  for  a 
discharge ;  he  wanted  to  recover  from  the  injury. 

There  were  others  in  the  ward  that  were  lively 
and  cheerful,  and  we  did  have  fun  at  times.  But  it 
was  not  fun  to  see  the  serious  wounds  dressed,  and  to 
hear  the  men  groan  as  a  piece  of  bone  was  removed 
or  a  bad  spot  was  burned  out  with  caustic. 

There  was  a  soldier  in  the  ward  who  had  lost  his 
reason,  due  a  wound  in  the  head.  He  almost  const 
antly  talked  about  Indians,  and  after  he  had  tried  to 
insert  the  tines  of  a  table-fork  in  an  ear  to  dig  the 
Indians  out,  he  was  placed  in  a  straight  jacket.  The 
day  before  that  was  done,  fearing  that  the  galvnic 
battery  would  be  used  on  him,  he  sneaked  into  the 
dispensary  and  destroyed  the  machine.  I  had  reason 
to  be  sorry  for  that,  as  the  galvanic  battery  was  being 
used  daily  in  the  treatment  I  received,  and  it  was  the 
only  one  available. 

The  hardest  feature  of  military  life  is  to  be  a  patient 
in  a  military  hospital. 

On  the  1st  of  December  eight  of  us  were  able  to 
get  about  on  crutches  and  were  permitted  to  take 
exercise  out  of  doors.  We  would  line  up  and  race 
for  the  sutler's  store,  the  last  man  in  to  pay  for  the 
cigars 

Taken  as  a  whole,  the  diet  and  the  regular  meals 
at  Fort  Rice  hospital  were  excellent  and  abundant. 
Even  fresh  eggs  were  provided.  Surgeon  Taylor 
each  day  inspected  the  kitchen  and  would  taste  and 
smell  of  food  prepared  for  the  men,  rejecting  any 
food  that  was  not  just  what  it  should  be. 


134        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

CHAPTER    THIRTY-TWO. 

Custer  and  Miles    Praised  by  Sick  and  Wounded  Men  As 

Ideal  Field  Commanders — Report  of  General  Custer 

of  Repulse  of  Heavy  Force  of  Indians. 

As  convalescence  progressed,  the  men  spent  con. 
siderable  time  in  discussing  the  Indian  campaigns  in 
which  they  had  taken  part,  the  different  methods  of 
warfare  with  the  reds,  and  their  likes  and  dislikes  of 
commanding  officers.  Disapproval  of  commanders 
who  had  failed  to  get  results  was  unanimous,  and  the 
men  praised  Custer  and  Miles  to  the  limit.  General 
Custer  had  a  "  way  of  his  own  "  as  an  Indian  fighter, 
and  for  a  number  of  years  had  kept  the  hostiles  busy 
in  the  very  section  in  which  we  had  been  campaign, 
ing,  and  when  Sitting  Bull  was  "  on  the  rampage," 
we  present  an  offical  report  he  made  while  in  the 
field.  It  is  illuminating  and  instructive : 

OFFICIAL  REPORT  OF  GENERAL  CUSTER. 

[  COPY.] 

Headquarters  Battalion  Seventh  Cavalry, 
Pompey's  Pillar,  Yellowstone  Riyer,  Montana, 

August  15th,  1873. 
Acting  Assistant  A-ijutant-General  Yellowstone 

Expedition  : 

SIR, — Acting  under  the  instructions  of  the  Brevet-Major- 
General  commanding,  I  proceeded  at  five  o'clock,  on  the 
morning  of  the  4th  instant,  with  one  squadron  of  my 
command,  numbering  about  ninety  men,  to  explore  a  route 
over  which  the  main  column  could  move.  Having  reached 
a  point  on  the  Yellowstone  River,  near  the  mouth  of 
Tongue  River,  and  several  miles  in  advance,  and  while 
waiting  the  arrival  of  the  forces  of  the  expedition,  six 
mounted  Sioux  dashed  boldly  into  the  skirt  of  the  timber 
within  which  my  command  had  halted  and  unsaddled,  and 
attempted  to  stampede  our  horses.  Fortunately  the 
vedettes  discovered  the  approach  of  the  Indians  in  time  to 
give  the  alarm.  A  few  well-directed  shots  soon  drove  the 
Indians  to  a  safe  distance,  where  they  kept  up  a  series  of 
yells,  occasionally  firing  a  few  shots.  As  soon  as  the 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        135 


squadron  could  mount,  I  directed  Captain  Moylan  to  move 
out  in  pursuit,  at  the  same  time  I  moved  with  the 
troops  in  advance,  commanded  by  First  Lieutenant  T.  W. 
Custer.  Following  the  Indians  at  a  brisk  gait,  my  suspL 
cions  became  excited  by  the  confident  bearing  exhibited  by 
the  six  Sioux  in  our  front,  whose  course  seemed  to 
lead  us  near  a  heavy  growth  of  timber  which  stood  along 
the  river  bank  above  us.  When  almost  within  rifle  range 
of  this  timber,  I  directed  the  squadron  to  halt,  while  I  with 
two  orderlies,  all  being  well  mounted,  continued  after  the 
Sioux  in  order  to  develope  their  intentions.  Proceeding  a 
few  hundred  yards  in  advance  of  the  squadron,  and  keep 
ing  a  watchful  eye  on  the  timber  to  my  left,  I  halted.  The 
six  Indians  in  my  front  also  halted,  as  if  to  tempt  further 
pursuit.  Finding  all  efforts  in  this  direction  unavailing, 
their  plans  and  intentions  were  quickly  made  evident,  as 
no  sooner  was  it  seen  that  we  intended  to  advance  no 
farther,  than  with  their  characteristic  howls  and  yells  over 
three  hundred  well-mounted  warriors  dashed  in  perfect 
line  from  the  edge  of  the  timber,  and  charged  down  upon 
Captain  Moylan's  squadron,  at  the  same  time  endeavoring 
to  intercept  the  small  party  with  me.  As  soon  as  the 
speed  of  the  thorough-bred  on  which  I  was  mounted 
brought  me  within  hailing  distance  of  Lieutenant  Custer's 
k  oop,  I  directed  that  officer  to  quickly  throw  forward  a 
dismounted  line  of  troopers,  and  endeavor  to  empty  a  few 
Indian  saddles.  The  order  was  obeyed  with  the  greatest 
alacrity,  and  as  the  Sioux  came  dashing  forward,  expect 
ing  to  ride  down  the  squadron,  a  line  of  dismounted 
cavalrymen  rose  from  the  grass  and  delivered  almost  in 
the  faces  of  the  warriors  a  volley  of  carbine  bullets  which 
broke  and  scattered  their  ranks  in  all  directions,  and  sent 
more  than  one  Sioux  reeling  from  the  saddle.  This  check 
gave  us  time  to  make  our  dispositions  to  resist  the  sue. 
ceeding  attacks,  which  we  knew  our  enemies  would  soon 
make  upon  us.  The  great  superiority  of  our  enemies  in 
numbers,  the  long  distance  separating  us  from  the  main 
command,  and  the  belief,  afterwards  verified,  that  the 
woods  above  us  still  concealed  a  portion  of  the  savage 
forces,  induced  me  to  confine  my  movements,  at  first, 


136        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


strictly  to  the  defensive.  The  entire  squadron  (except  the 
horse-holders)  was  dismounted  and  ordered  to  fight  on 
.foot.  The  Indians  outnumbering  us  almost  five  to  one, 
were  enabled  to  envelope  us  completely  between  their 
lines  formed  in  a  semicircle,  and  the  river  which  flowed 
at  our  backs.  The  little  belt  of  timber  in  which  we  had 
been  first  attacked  formed  a  very  good  cover  for  our  led- 
horses,  while  the  crest  of  a  second  table-land,  convenient 
ly  located  from  the  timber,  gave  us  an  excellent  line  of 
defense.  The  length  of  our  line  and  the  numbers  of  the 
enemy  prevented  us  from  having  any  force  in  reserve  ; 
every  available  officer  and  man  was  on  the  skirmish-line, 
which  was  really  our  line  of  battle,  even  the  number  of 
men  holding  horses  had  to  be  reduced,  so  that  each  horse- 
holder  held  eight  horses.  Until  the  Indians  were  made  to 
taste  quite  freely  of  our  lead  they  displayed  unusual  bold 
ness,  frequently  charging  up  to  our  line  and  firing  with 
great  deliberation  and  accuracy.  Captain  Moylan  exer 
cised  command  along  the  entire  line  ;  Lieutenant  Custer 
commanded  the  center;  my  adjutant,  Lieutenant  James 
Calhoun  commander  the  right ;  and  Lieutenant  Charles  A. 
Varnum,  the  left,  The  first  Indian  killed  was  shot  from 
his  pony  by  "Bloody  Knife,"  the  Crow  who  acted 
as  my  guide  and  scout.  Soon  after,  Private  Charles 
P.  Miller,  of  A  troop,  Seventh  Cavalry,  succeeded  in  send 
ing  a  carbine  bullet  directly  through  the  body  of  a  chief 
who  had  been  conspicuous  throughout  the  engagement. 
At  the  same  time  it  was  known  that  our  firing  had  dis 
abled  many  of  their  ponies,  while  owing  to  our  sheltered 
position  the  only  damage  thus  far  inflicted  upon  us  was 
one  man  and  two  horses  wounded,  one  of  the  latter  shot 
in  three  places. 

Finding  their  efforts  to  force  back  our  line  unavailing, 
the  Indians  now  resorted  to  another  expedient.  By  an 
evidently  preconcerted  plan  they  set  fire  in  several  places, 
to  the  tall  grass  which  covered  the  ground  in  our  front 
hoping  by  this  means  to  force  us  back  to  the  rear,  and 
thus  finish  us  at  their  pleasure.  Fortunately  for  us  there 
was  no  wind  prevailing  at  the  time,  while  the  grass  was 
scarcely  dry  enough  to  burn  rapidly.  Taking  advantage 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        137 


of  the  dense  curtain  of  smoke  which  rose  from  the  burning 
grass,  the  Indians,  by  following  the  course  of  the  flames, 
could  often  contrive  to  obtain  a  shot  at  us  at  a  compara 
tively  close  range ;  but  my  men,  observing  that  there 
was  no  danger  to  be  apprehended  from  the  slowly  advanc 
ing  flames,  could  frequently  catch  an  opportunity  to  send 
a  shot  through  a  break  in  the  curtain  of  smoke,  and  in  this 
way  surprised  the  Indian  by  the  adoption  of  his  own 
device. 

The  fight  began  at  11:30  A.  M.,  and  was  waged  without 
cessation  until  three  o'clock,  all  efforts  of  the  Indians  to 
dislodge  us  proving  unsuccessful.  The  Indians  had  become 
extremely  weary,  and  had  almost  discontinued  their 
offensive  movements,  when  my  ammunition  ran  low.  I 
decided  to  mount  the  squadron  and  charge  the  Indians, 
with  the  intention  of  driving  them  from  the  field. 

Captain  Moylan  promptly  had  his  men  in  the  saddle, 
and  throwing  twenty  mounted  skirmishers,  under  Lieuten 
ant  Varnum,  the  entire  squadron  moved  forward  at  a  trot. 
No  sooner  did  the  Indians  discern  our  intentions  than,  de 
spite  their  superiority  in  numbers,  they  cowardly  prepared 
for  flight,  in  which  preparation  they  were  greatly  hastened 
when  Captain  Moylan's  squadron  charged  them  and  drove 
them  "  pell-mell  "  for  three  miles. 

Five  ponies  killed  or  badly  wounded  were  left  on  the 
battle  ground  or  along  the  line  of  their  flight.  So  rapidly 
were  they  forced  to  flee  that  they  abandoned  and  threw 
away  breech-loading  arms,  saddle  equipments,  clothing, 
robes,  lariats,  and  other  articles  comprised  in  an  Indian 
outfit. 

Among  the  Indians  who  fought  us  on  this  occasion 
were  some  of  the  identical  warriors  who  committed  the 
massacre  at  Fort  Phil.  Kearney,  and  they  no  doubt  intend 
ed  a  similar  program  when  they  sent  the  six  warriors  to 
dash  up  and  attempt  to  decoy  us  into  a  pursuit  past  the 
timber  in  which  the  savages  hoped  to  ambush  us.  Had  we 
pursued  the  six  warriors  half  a  mile  farther,  instead  of 
halting,  the  entire  band  would  have  been  in  our  rear. 

So  far  as  the  troops  attacked  were  concerned,  the 
Indians,  to  off-set  their  own  heavy  losses,  had  been  able 


138      SEVENTH  CAVALRY 


to  do  us  no  damage  except  to  wound  one  man  and  two 
horses ;  but  unfortunately  two  non-combatants,  Veter 
inary  Surgeon  John  Hosinger,  Seventh  Cavalry,  and  Mr. 
Baliran,  of  Memphis,  Tenn.,  in  endeavoring  to  come  from 
the  main  column  to  join  the  squadron  in  advance,  were 
discovered  by  the  Indians  during  the  attack,  and  being  un 
armed  were  overtaken  and  killed  almost  within  view  of 
the  battle-ground.  Fortunately  the  Indians  were  so  pressed 
as  not  to  be  able  to  scalp  or  otherwise  mutilate  the 
remains. 

On  the  8th  instant  we  discovered  the  trail  of  a  large 
village,  evidently  to  which  the  party  that  had  attacked  us 
on  the  4th  belonged.  The  course  of  the  trail  led  up  the 
Yellowstone,  and  apparently  was  not  more  than  two  days 
old.  Acting  under  the  authority  of  the  Brevert-Major- 
General  commanding,  I  ordered  my  command,  consisting 
of  four  squadrons  of  the  Seventh  Cavalry,  in  readiness  to 
begin  the  pursuit  that  night.  The  Brevert-Major-General 
also  directed  the  detachment  of  guides  and  Indian  scouts 
under  Lieutenent  Daniel  H.  Brush,  17th  Infantry,  to  report 
to  me  for  temporary  service.  Leaving  all  tents  and  wag 
ons  behind:  and  taking  with  us  rations  for  seven  days,  we 
started  in  pursuit  at  10  o'clock  on  the  night  of  the  8th  in 
stant,  having  waited  until  that  hour  until  the  moon  should 
enable  us  to  follow  the  trail.  Following  the  trail  as  rapid 
ly  as  the  rough  character  of  the  country  would  permit  > 
daylight  next  morning  found  us  nearly  thirty  miles  from 
our  starting-point.  Concealing  horses  and  men  in  a  ravine 
a  halt  of  three  hours  was  ordered  to  enable  the  horses  to 
graze  and  the  men  to  obtain  refreshments.  Renewing  the 
march  at  eight  o'clock,  the  pursuit  was  continued  without 
halting  until  noon,  when,  to  avoid  discovery,  as  well  as  to 
obtain  needed  rest  for  men  and  animals,  it  was  decided  to 
conceal  ourselves  in  the  timber,  and  await  the  cover  of 
night  to  continue  the  pursuit. 

Starting  out  at  6:30  P.  M.,  the  trail  was  followed  rapid 
ly  for  six  miles,  when,  to  our  disappointment,  we  discov 
ered  that  the  Indians  had  taken  to  the  river,  and  crossed 
to  the  east  side.  In  following  their  trail  to  this  point  it 
was  evident  that  the  movement  of  the  Indians  was  one  of 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        139 


precipitate  flight,  the  result  of  the  engagement  on  the  4th. 
All  along  their  trail  and  in  their  camping-places  were  to  be 
found  large  quantities  of  what  constituted  Indian  equip 
ments,  such  as  lodge-poles,  robes,  saddle  equipments, 
arms,  and  cooking  utensils  In  a  hastily  abandoned  camp 
ground  nearly  two  hundred  axes,  besides  a  great  many 
camp-kettles  and  cups,  were  found. 

My  entire  command  was  disappointed  when  the  trail 
showed  that  the  Indians  had  crossed  to  the  other  side,  par 
ticularly  as  our  rapid  marching  had  carried  us  to  the  point 
of  crossing,  the  evening  of  the  day  on  which  the  last  of 
the  Indians  had  crossed  over,  so  that  one  more  march 
would  have  enabled  us  to  overhaul  them.  Bivouacking  in 
in  a  belt  of  timber  on  the  river  bank,  we  waited  until  day 
light  to  begin  to  attempt  to  cross  the  command  over  the 
river,  which  at  this  point  is  about  six  hundred  yards  wide. 
At  early  dawn  the  entire  command  forded  the  river  to  an 
island  located  in  the  middle  of  the  channel ;  but  our  diffi 
culties  in  the  way  of  crossing  here  began,  as  the  volume 
of  water  and  the  entire  force  of  the  current  were  to  be 
encountered  between  the  island  and  the  opposite  bank — 
the  current  here  rushes  by  with  a  velocity  of  about  7  miles 
an  hour,  while  the  depth  of  the  water  was  such  that  a  horse 
attempting  to  cross  would  be  forced  to  swim  several  hun 
dred  yards.  Still  as  we  knew  the  Indians  had  not  discovered 
our  pursuit,  and  were  probably  located  within  easy  strik 
ing  distance  of  the  river,  it  was  most  desirable  that  a 
crossing  should  be  effected.  To  accomplish  this,  Lieuten 
ant  Weston,  Seventh  Cavalry,  with  three  accomplished 
swimmers  from  the  command,  attempted  to  cross  on  a 
log-raft,  carrying  a  cable  made  of  lariats.  The  current  was 
so  strong  that  Lieutenant  Weston's  party  were  unah,le  to 
effect  a  landing,  but  were  swept  down  the  river  nearly  two 
miles,  and  then  forced  to  abandon  the  raft  and  swim 
to  shore. 

Lieut.  Weston,  with  characteristic  perserverance  and 
energy,  made  repeated  attempts  afterwards  to  carry  the 
cable  over,  but  although  succeeding  in  reaching  the  oppo 
site  bank  in  person,  was  unable  to  connect  the  cable  with 
the  shore.  Almost  the  entire  day  was  spent  in  these  un- 


140     SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


successful  efforts,  until  finally  a  crossing  in  this  manner 
had  to  be  abandoned.  I  then  caused  some  cattle  to  be 
killed,  and  by  stretching  the  hides  over  a  kind  of  basket- 
frame  prepared  by  the  Crow  guide,  made  what  are  known 
among  the  Indians  as  bull-boats  ;  with  these  I  hoped  to  be 
able  to  connect  the  cable  with  the  opposite  bank  at  day 
light  next  morning,  but  just  at  sunset  a  small  party  of 
Indians  were  seen  to  ride  down  to  the  bank  opposite  us 
and  water  their  ponies.  They  discovered  our  presence, 
and  at  once  hastened  away.  Of  course  it  was  useless  now 
to  attempt  a  surprise,  and  the  intention  to  cross  the  river 
the  following  morning  was  abandoned. 

At  early  dawn  the  next  day  (the  llth  instant),  the  Indi 
ans  appeared  in  strong  force  on  the  river  bank  opposite 
us,  and  opened  a  brisk  fire  upon  us  from  their  rifles.  No 
attention  was  paid  to  them  until  encouraged  by  this  they 
had  collected  at  several  points  in  full  view,  and  within 
range  of  our  rifles,  when  about  thirty  of  our  best  marks 
men,  having  posted  themselves  along  the  bank,  opened  a 
well-directed  fire  upon  the  Indians  and  drove  them  back  to 
cover. 

In  the  meantime  strong  parties  of  Indians  were  report 
ed  by  our  pickets  to  be  crossing  the  river  below  us,  their 
ponies  and  themselves  being  so  accustomed  to  the  river  as 
to  render  this  operation  quite  practicable  to  them.  Cap 
tain  French,  commanding  the  right  wing,  was  directed  to 
watch  the  parties  crossing  below,  while  Colonel  Hart,  com 
manding  the  right  wing,  posted  a  force  to  discharge  this 
duty  with  regard  to  parties  crossing  above.  It  would  haye 
been  possible,  perhaps,  for  us  to  have  prevented  the  Indi 
ans  from  making  a  crossing,  at  least  when  they  did,  but  I 
was  not  only  willing  but  anxious  that  as  many  of  them 
should  come  over  as  were  so  disposed.  They  were  soon 
reported  as  moving  to  the  bluffs  immediately  in  rear  of  us 
from  the  river.  Lieutenant  Brush  was  directed  to  employ 
his  scouts  in  watching  and  reporting  their  movents — a 
duty  which  they  discharged  in  a  thorough  manner. 

While  this  was  transpiring  I  had  mounted  my  com 
mand  and  formed  it  in  line  close  under  the  bluffs  facing 
from  the  river,  where  we  quietly  waited  the  attack  of  the 


FIGHTING    INDIANS     141 


Indians  in  our  front.  The  sharp-shooting  across  the  river 
still  continued,  the  Indians  having  collected  some  of  their 
best  shots — apparently  armed  with  long-range  rifles — and 
were  attempting  to  drive  our  men  back  from  the  water's 
edge.  It  was  at  this  time  that  my  standing  orderly,  Private 
Tuttle,  of  E  troop,  Seventh  Cavalry,  one  of  the  best 
marksmen  in  my  command,  took  a  sporting 
Springfield  rifle  and  posted  himself,  with  two  other  men, 
behind  cover  on  the  river  bank,  and  began  picking  off  the 
Indians  as  they  exposed  themselves  on  the  opposite  bank. 
He  had  obtained  the  range  of  the  enemy's  position  early 
in  the  morning,  and  was  able  to  place  his  shots  wherever 
desired.  It  was  while  so  engaged  that  he  observed  an 
Indian  in  full  view  near  the  river.  Calling  the  attention 
of  his  comrade  to  the  fact,  he  asked  him  "  to  watch  me 
drop  that  Indian,"  a  feat  which  he  succeeded  in  perform 
ing.  Several  other  Indians  rushed  to  the  assistance  of 
their  fallen  comrade,  when  Private  Tuttle,  by  a  skilful  and 
rapid  use  of  his  breech-loading  Springfield,  succeeded  in 
killing  two  other  warriors.  The  Indians,  enraged  no 
doubt  at  this  rough  handling,  directed  their  aim  at  Private 
Tuttle,  who  fell  pierced  through  the  head  by  a  rifle  bullet 
He  was  one  of  the  most  useful  and  daring  soldiers  who 
ever  served  under  my  command. 

About  this  time  Captain  French,  who  was  engaged 
with  the  Indians  who  were  attacking  us  from  below,  suc 
ceeded  in  shooting  a  warrior  from  his  saddle,  while  several 
ponies  were  known  to  be  wounded  or  disabled.  The  Indi 
ans  now  began  to  display  a  strong  force  in  our  front  on 
the  bluffs.  Colonel  Hart  was  ordered  to  push  a  line  of 
dismounted  men  to  the  crest,  and  prevent  the  further  ad 
vance  of  the  enemy  towards  the  river.  This  duty  was 
handsomely  performed  by  a  portion  of  Captain  Yates's 
squadron.  Colonel  Hart  had  posted  Lieutenant  Charles 
Braden  and  twenty  men  on  a  small  knoll  which  command 
ed  our  left.  Against  this  party  the  Indians  made  their 
first  onslaught.  A  mounted  party  of  warriors,  numbering 
nearly  two  hundred,  rode  boldly  to  within  thirty  yards  of 
Lieutenant  Braden's  position,  when  the  latter  and  his  com 
mand  delivered  such  a  well-directed  fire  that  the  Indians 


142        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


were  driven  rapidly  from  that  part  of  the  field,  after  hav 
ing  evidently  suffered  considerable  loss. 

Unfortunately  Lieutenant  Braden  received  a  rifle-ball 
through  the  upper  part  of  the  thigh,  passing  directly 
through  the  bone,  but  he  maintained  his  position  with 
gallantry  and  coolness  until  he  had  repulsed  the  enemy. 
Hundreds  of  Indians  were  now  to  be  seen  galloping  up 
and  down  along  our  front,  each  moment  becoming  bolder 
owing  to  the  smallness  of  our  force  which  was  then 
visible. 

$  !>  Believing  the  proper  time  had  arrived  to  assume  the 
offensive,  orders  to  this  effect  were  accordingly  sent  to 
Colonel  Hart  and  Captain  French,  the  two  wing  com 
manders.  Lieutenant  Weston  was  directed  to  move  his 
troop,  L,  up  a  deep  ravine  to  our  left,  which  would  convey 
him  to  the  enemy's  position,  and  as  soon  as  an  opportuni 
ty  occurred  he  was  to  charge  them,  and  pursue  the  Indians 
with  all  the  vigor  practicable.  Immediately  after,  Captain 
Owen  Hale  was  directed  to  move  his  squadron,  consisting 
of  E  and  K  troops,  in  conjunction  with  L  troop,  and  the 
three  to  charge  simultaneously.  Similar  dispositions  were 
ordered  in  the  center  and  right.  Lieutenant  Custer,  com 
manding  B  troop,  was  ordered  to  advance  and  charge  the 
Indians  in  front  of  our  center,  while  Captains  Yates  and 
Moylan  moved  rapidly  forward  in  the  same  direction. 

Before  this  movement  began,  it  became  necessary  to 
dislodge  a  large  party  of  Indians  posted  in  a  ravine  behind 
rocks  in  our  front,  who  were  engaged  in  keeping  up  a 
heavy  fire  upon  our  troops  while  the  latter  were  forming. 
It  was  at  this  point  that  the  horse  of  Lieutenant  Hiram  H. 
Ketchum,  Acting- Assistant- Adjutant-General  of  the  expe 
dition,  was  shot  under  him.  My  own  horse  was  also  shot 
under  me  within  a  few  paces  of  the  latter. 

The  duty  of  driving  the  Indians  engaged  in  sharp- 
shooting  entrusted  to  Lieutenant  Charles  A.  Varnum, 
Seventh  Cavalry,  with  a  detatchment  of  A  troop  of  the 
Seventh  Cavalry,  soon  forced  the  Indians  back  from  their 
cover. 

Everything  being  in  readiness  for  a  general  advance, 
the  charge  was  ordered  and  the  squadrons  took  the  gallop 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       143 


to  the  tune  of  "Garryowen,"  the  band  being  posted  im 
mediately  in  rear  of  the  skirmish  line.  The  Indians  had 
evidently  come  out  prepared  to  do  their  best,  and  with  no 
misgivings  as  to  their  success,  as  the  mounds  and  high 
bluffs  beyond  the  river  were  covered  with  groups  of  old 
old  men,  squaws,  and  children,  who  had  collected  there  to 
witness  our  destruction.  In  this  instance  the  proverbial 
power  of  music  to  soothe  the  savage  breast  utterly  failed 
for  no  sooner  did  the  band  strike  up  the  cheery  notes  of 
"  Garryowen,"  and  the  squadrons  advance  to  the  charge, 
than  the  Indians  exhibited  unmistakable  signs  of  commo 
tion,  and  their  resistance  became  more  feeble,  until  finally 
satisfied  of  the  earnestness  of  our  attack  they  turned  their 
ponies'  heads  and  began  a  disorderly  flight.  The  cavalry 
put  spurs  to  their  horses  and  dashed  forward  in  pursuit, 
the  various  troop  and  squadron  commanders  vying  with 
one  another  as  to  who  should  head  the  advance.  The  ap 
pearance  of  the  main  command  in  sight,  down  the  valley, 
at  this  moment,  enabled  me  to  relieve  Captain  French's 
command  below  us,  and  he  was  ordered  to  join  in  the 
pursuit.  Lieutenant  Mclntosh,  commanding  G  troop, 
moved  his  command  up  the  valley  at  a  gallop,  and  pre 
vented  many  of  the  Indians  from  crossing.  The  chase  was 
continued  with  the  utmost  vigor  until  the  Indians  were 
completely  dispersed,  and  driven  a  distance  of  nine  miles 
from  where  the  engagement  took  place,  and  they  were 
here  forced  back  across  the  Yellowstone,  the  last  pony 
killed  in  the  attack  being  shot  fully  eight  miles  from  the 
point  of  attack. 

The  number  of  Indians  opposed  to  us  has  been  estimat 
ed  by  the  various  officers  engaged  as  from  eight  hundred 
to  a  thousand.  My  command  numbered  four  hun 
dred  and  fifty,  including  officers  and  men.  The 
Indians  were  made  up  of  different  bands  of  Sioux,  princi 
pally  Uncpapas,  the  whole  under  command  of  "  Sitting 
Bull,"  who  participated  in  the  second  day's  fight,  and  who 
for  once  has  been  taught  a  lesson  he  will  not  soon  forget. 

A  large  number  of  Indians  who  fought  us  were  fresh 
from  their  reservations  on  the  Missouri  river.  Many  of  the 
warriors  engaged  in  the  fight  on  both  days  were  dressed 


144        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


in  complete  suits  of  the  clothes  issued  at  the  agencies  to 
the  Indians.  The  arms  with  which  they  fought  us  (several 
of  which  we  captured  in  the  fight)  were  of  the  latest  im 
proved  patterns  of  breech  loading  repeating  rifles,  and 
their  supply  of  metallic  rifle-cartridges  seemed  unlimited, 
as  they  were  anything  but  sparing  in  their  use.  So  amply 
were  they  supplied  with  breech-loading  rifles  and  ammu 
nition  that  neither  bows  nor  arrows  were  employed 
against  us.  As  an  evidence  that  these  Indians,  at  least 
many  of  them,  were  recently  from  the  Missouri  river 
agencies,  we  found  provisions,  such  as  coffee,  in  their 
abandoned  camps,  and  cooking  and  other  domestic  uten 
sils,  such  as  only  reservation  Indians  are  supplied  with. 
Besides,  our  scouts  conversed  with  them  across  the  river 
for  nearly  an  hour  before  the  fight  became  general,  and 
satisfied  themselves  as  to  the  identity  of  their  foes.  I 
only  regret  that  it  was  impossible  for  my  command  to 
effect  a  crossing  of  the  river  before  our  presence  was  dis 
covered,  and  while  the  hostile  village  was  located  near  at 
hand,  as  I  am  confident  that  we  could  have  largely  reduced 
the  necessity  for  appropriating  for  Indian  supplies  for 
the  coming  Winter. 

The  losses  of  the  Indians  in  ponies  were  particularly 
heavy,  while  we  know  their  losses  in  killed  and  wounded 
were  beyond  all  propertion  to  that  which  they  were  en 
abled  to  inflict  upon  us,  our  losses  being  one  officer  badly 
wounded,  four  men  killed,  and  three  wounded ;  four 
horses  killed  and  four  wounded. 

Careful    investigation   justifies  the  statement  that  in 
cluding  both  days'  battles,  the  Indians'  losses  will  number 
forty  warriors,  while  their  wounded  on  the  opposite  bank 
of  the  river  may  increase  this  number. 
Respectfully  submitted. 

[Signed,]  G.  A.  CUSTER, 

Lieutenant-Colonel  7th  Cavalry, 
Brevet-Major-General,  U.  S.  A.,  Commanding. 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        145 


CHAPTER  THIRTY-THREE. 

On  Scout  to  Little  Big  Horn — Accompany  Officers  to  Battle. 

field  Where  Custer  and  All  His  Force  Were  Killed 

— Skeletons  Strewn  Over  Scene  of  Battle, 

ABOUT  fourteen  months  after  "  Ouster's  Last 
Charge,"  on  the  Little  Big  Horn,  while  our  force  was 
on  Tongue  River,  I  was  included  in  a  detail  ordered 
on  a  scout  into  the  Big  Horn  country,  and  also  to  act 
as  escort  of  a  few  officers  who  wished  to  see  the 
battlefield  where  Custer  and  his  men  met  death. 

Some  say  that  the  distance  from  Tongue  River, 
near  the  mountains,  to  the  battlefield,  does  not  exceed 
twenty -five  miles  ;  others  place  the  estimate  at  thirty 
and  none  over  thirty-five— but  we,  after  two  long  and 
hard  days'  ride  from  the  head  of  the  Little  Horn  in 
the  mountains,  a  point  nearer  than  Tongue  River,  at 
present  General  Miles's  headquarters,  carefully  com 
pute  the  distance  to  be  at  least  forty -five  miles. 

Beginning  with  the  noble  table-land  upon  which 
we  stood,  the  ground  gradually  and  gently  fell  to 
wards  the  river,  straightening  out  as  level  as  a  floor* 
and  with  both  sides  clearly  defined  by  the  sparsely 
shaded  streams  and  the  bluffs. 

Beyond  the  water  appeared  the  rugged  embank 
ment,  extending  from  the  south  (where  Reno  held  his 
force  while  Custer  and  his  command  were  struggling 
in  "  the  jaws  of  death,")  to  the  limit  of  vision  on  the 
north,  standing  perpendicular,  save  an  occasional  gap 
through  which  some  trickling  stream  contributed  its 
mite  to  the  general  volume  of  the  Little  Horn,  or 
through  which  entrance  to  the  fords  are  made,  and 
through  which  we  must  ride  if  we  would  gain  the 
other  side. 


146        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 

Still  farther  back,  towards  the  Rosebud,  the  silent 
timberless,  sandy  Wolf  Mountains  loomed  high,  cast 
ing  a  mild  and  pleasing  shadow  over  the  landscape, 
while  at  the  other  extremity  of  the  valley  the  gradual 
divides,  rich  with  verdure  and  bright-hued  with  full 
blown  flowers,  completed  as  beautiful  a  scene  as  the 
eye  of  an  artist  ever  rested  on,  or  the  hand  of  a  mas 
ter  ever  transferred  to  canvas. 

At  last,  after  a  weary  march,  and  not  without 
the  many  little  incidents  which  go  to  liven  up,  and 
sometimes  to  still  further  depress  the  drooping  spirits 
of  man  and  beast,  we  arrived  at  and  entered  the  site 
of  the  old  Indian  village,  hard  by  which  General 
Custer  and  his  men  were  trapped  and  slaughtered. 

This  camping  place  was  about  four  miles  long,  a 
half-mile  wide,  and  located  by  the  river  side,  upon  a 
depressed  table-land  with  a  thin  growth  of  timber, 
which  at  one  time  extended  all  over  the  bottom,  but 
the  felling  of  the  trees  by  the  squaws  to  secure  the 
bark  for  food  for  ponies  during  the  winters,  had  left 
the  central  portion  of  the  strip  almost  barren. 

At  the  southern  side,  we  passed  through  a  dense, 
bushy  grove,  covering  three  or  four  acres,  where  the 
squaws  and  papooses  were  concealed  when  Custer 
approached,  and  and  until  the  Cavalry  were  securely 
trapped. 

Beyond  this  the  ground  presented  a  strange  spec 
tacle.  Teepee  and  lodge  poles  were  as  thick  as 
they  could  stand,  while  all  about  camp  equippage  and 
hides  were  scattered  in  confusion. 

An  outstanding  feature  was  the  great  quantities  of 
leggins  lying  about,  and  the  only  explanation  is,  that 
the  Indians  discarded  them  for  articles  of  clothing 
taken  from  the  dead  soldiers. 

Farther  down  we  saw  six  burial  scaffolds,  and  on 
the  ground  beneath  them  were  the  bones  of  as  many 


FIGHTING    INDIANS        147 


Indians,  the  skull  of  one  of  them  having  been  pierced 
by  and  still  containing  a  rifle  bullet. 

It  was  nearly  dark  when  we  reached  the  lower 
ford,  about  half-way  through  the  abandoned  Indian 
village,  where  we  camped  for  the  night,  wet,  cold, 
hungry  and  greatly  fatigued.  Supper  was  quickly 
prepared,  and  after  eating  and  taking  a  short  smoke, 
we  spread  our  wet  blankets  on  the  ground,  and  all 
turned  in  for  the  night ;  but  not  to  sleep,  for  coyotes 
and  wolves  kept  up  their  horrid  din,  as  though  angry 
at  being  deprived  of  their  accustomed  nightly  hunt 
for  scraps  of  muscle  and  flesh  on  bones  scattered 
about. 

We  had  been  lying  down  some  time,  when  a  yell 
rent  the  air,  and  Jack  Healey  sprang  to  his  feet  shout 
ing  "  snakes !" 

Jack,  while  nearly  asleep,  had  felt  a  cold,  slimy 
something  crawl  over  his  face,  and  then  followed  the 
warning  cry  of  "  snakes  !" 

We  were  soon  on  our  feet,  quickly  replenished  the 
dying  fire,  and  with  sabers  in  hand  began  to  hunt  for 
the  unwelcome  intruders.  No  snakes  were  found, 
but  we  found  lizards,  hundreds  of  the  slimey  green 
things,  and  the  slaughter  continued  until  the  last  one 
found  was  dead.  Then  we  tried  our  blankets  again 
but  dread  of  another  attack  by  the  repulsive  things 
did  not  allow  us  to  fall  asleep.  Soon  another  man 
felt  one  of  the  reptiles  crawling  over  him,  and  then 
all  arose  and  there  was  another  slaughter  of  lizards. 
Sleep  was  out  of  the  question.  So  we  lay  and  sat 
around  until  morning  dawned. 

After  a  hasty  breakfast  we  passed  on  over  the 
battlefield,  where  a  little  over  one  year  ago,  General 
George  A.  Custer  and  three  hundred  brave  troopers 
of  the  Seventh  Cavalry,  while  in  the  line  of  duty, 
were  massacred  by  between  three  and  four  thousand 
Indian  warriors  under  the  immediate  command  of 


148       SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


Sitting  Bull,  Not  one  of  the  hostiles  having  part  in 
that  masacre  has  ever  been  called  to  account  for  the 
awful  deed.  Worse  than  that,  some  of  these  very 
same  savages,  are  now  fed  and  supported  by  the  gov 
ernment  they  fought  against,  and  are  the  forced 
associates  and  companions  of  members  of  the  Seventh 
Cavalry  ! 

The  bodies  -of  our  dead  had  never  been  properly 
buried.  All  these  months  had  passed,  yet  the  little 
band  whose  brave  deeds  of  heroism  will  ever  remain 
a  matter  of  history,  have  not  received  decent  burial. 
Their  bones,  divested  of  clothing  by  the  heartless  and 
brutal  savages,  and  of  flesh  by  wolves  and  other  ani 
mals,  lie  bleaching  on  the  ground  where  they  fell> 
a  said  result  of  the  failure  of  Major  Reno  to  give 
expected  support. 

Two  days  after  the  battle  a  small  d  achment  was 
sent  to  bury  the  bodies,  but  not  one  was  given  proper 
interment — graves  were  shallow,  and  dirt  thrown  but 
sparsely  over  bodies  was  soon  washed  away  by  rains 
or  dug  away  by  scavanger  animals  and  birds. 

Crossing  the  Little  Horn,  or  Custer  River  as  it  is 
now  called,  to  the  east  side,  a  well-defined  trail  leads 
up  the  gradual  slope  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length- 
The  ground  is  covered  with  sage  brush,  coarse 
grass,  prickley  pears,  and  is  destitute  of  rocks  or 
timber.  We  reach  the  summit,  and  see  a  ravine  with 
gentle  sloping  sides,  near  a  half-mile  in  length — and 
free  from  rocks,  timber,  or  anything  that  could  fur 
nish  shelter.  Nearby  are  the  uncovered  remains  of 
eighteen  men,  in  six  piles,  with  a  piece  of  tepee  pole 
sticking  in  the  ground  at  each  pile.  Upon  one  of 
these  "  tombstones  "  hung  a  white  sombrero,  relic  of  a 
member  of  the  Seventh  Cavalry,  with  two  bullet  holes 
through  it,  and  a  long  cut  as  if  made  with  an  axe ; 
and  near  by  we  found  an  axe,  with  a  dark  stain  on 
the  rusty  blade,  it  having  undoubtedly  been  used  by 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        149 


the  squaws  in  their  frenzied  mutilation  of  the  wound 
ed  and  dead  of  the  Curtis  command.  Near  here  were 
the  carcasses  of  two  horses  ;  to  the  north,  a  few  yards 
away,  were  heaps  of  bones  so  mixed  that  it  was  not 
possible  to  count  the  number  of  persons  represented. 
A  little  farther  on,  and  another  heap  containing  the 
bones  of  three  men  appear  beside  the  skeleton  of  a 
horse,  evidently  killed  to  be  used  as  a  breastwork. 

A  heavy  trail  runs  along  the  crest  of  the  divide, 
which  separates  the  river  from  the  ravine,  and  it  was 
thickly  strewn  with  whitened  bones,  rotting  equip 
ments  and  clothing. 

Three  hundred  yards  up  the  trail,  we  came  upon 
the  knoll  where  Custer  and  the  remnant  of  his  com 
mand  made  their  final  stand.  We  picture  him  in  our 
mind,  as  he  coolly  loads  and  fires  with  the  rest  of  the 
men,  frequently  glancing  over  the  bluffs  to  see  if 
Reno,  whom  he  had  so  urgently  requested  to  hasten 
to  his  support,  is  at  hand.  Reno's  utter  failure  to 
respond  is  generally  condemned. 

This  elevation  of  the  battlefield  is  but  a  little 
above  the  divide  of  which  it  is  the  terminus,  and  is, 
apparently,  a  commanding  position.  But  the  enemy 
were  too  powerful  for  the  small  body  of  troops  who 
were  there.  On  top  of  the  hill  where  Custer  was 
killed,  we  saw  the  skeletons  of  four  men  and 
horses,  among  the  latter  being  the  skeleton  of  the 
horse  that  Custer  rode. 

We  return  to  Tongue  River,  with  the  picture  of 
that  field  of  death  vividly  impressed  on  our  mind, 
and  wondering  if  Custer  and  is  men  would  have  per 
ished  had  Reno  tried  to  fight  his  way  to  Custer's 
rescue.  Trump ter  Martin  says  Reno  could  have  got 
there ;  and  Trumpeter  Martin  knows,  as  he  is  the 
man  Custer  sent  back  to  ask  Reno  to  hurry  to  his 
assistance. 


150        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


CHAPTER    THIRTY-FOUR. 

The  Author  Bids  Farewell  to  His  Comrades  at  Fort  Rice 

Army  Hospital — Receives  Honorable  Discharge  on 

Account  of  Total  Disability — Back  Home ! 

AT  THE  Fort  Rice  army  hospital,  our  bunch  of 
victims  of  the  final  stand  of  Chief  Joseph,  passed 
the  Fall  and  part  of  the  Winter,  while  there  was  a 
gradual  thinning  out. 

Some  were  discharged,  others  returned  to  quar 
ters,  and  still  others  returned  to  duty,  and  yet  there 
were  eighteen  of  us  in  the  ward,  but  all  considered 
out  of  danger  by  Surgeon  Taylor. 

I  was  one  day  called  to  the  office  of  the  Command 
ing  officer,  and  as  I  entered,  Colonel  Otis  looked  up, 
and  in  his  gruff  voice  asked  me  if  I  wanted  to  go  to 
the  Soldiers'  Home  at  Washington.  (Otis  had  taken 
"  sick  leave,"  on  furlough,  while  the  chase  to  overtake 
Chief  Joseph  was  on,  and  returned  under  escort  to 
Fort  Rice.) 

To  his  question  I  answered,  "  No,  sir  1" 

Otis  then  informed  me  that  I  was  to  be  discharged 
by  reason  of  Surgeon  Taylor's  report  that  I  was 
incurable ;  and  that  I  could  go  home,  if  I  had  one,  or 
to  the  Regular  Army  Soldiers'  Home,  either  one  I 
chose. 

His  manner  was  gruff  and  anything  but  courteous 
—he  ran  true  to  form — the  only  name  by  which  he 
was  known  among  the  men  under  his  command  when 
he  was  in  charge  of  a  Battalion  under  Sturges 
"  wandering  through  the  wilderness" — "  The  Bull 
dozer  /" 

I  told  Otis  I  thought  I  could  die  as  well  in  one 
place  as  another,  and  that  I  would  go  to  what  would 


FIGHTING    INDIANS         151 

be  my  home.  He  said  "  All  right,"  and  I  returned  to 
the  Hospital,  feeling  rather  blue.  Here  I  was,  not 
twenty-four  years  of  age,  and  to  be  discharged  as 
incurable  / 

Well,  this  meant— 

No  longer  to  indulge  in  those  long  and  tiresome 
marches ! 

No  longer  Drill !  Drill!  Drill! 

No  more  hard-tack  and  bacon! 

Incurable  1 

I  would  now  have  all  I  could  do  to  keep  up  on 
crutches. 

Not  a  very  pleasant  outlook  for  a  young  man,  but 
no  use  murmuring.  No  use  worrying.  Lots  of  men 
"have  gone  home  dead,  and  I  can  wiggle  I  But  I  did 
feel  all  out  whack. 

In  a  few  days  the  Steward  returned  from  the 
Adjutant's  office  with  his  morning  report,  and  coming 
up  to  me  as  I  sat  on  the  edge  of  my  cot,  held  out  his 
Tiand  and  said  :  "  Old  man,  I  wish  that  I  was  you  ! 
You  are  now  your  own  boss,  and  will  not  have  to  do 
dog's  duty  any  more !"  And  then  he  handed  me  a 
long  envelope. 

I  looked  at  the  address  on  the  outside.    It  read : 
"Mr,  A.  F,  Muford,  Hospital" 
"  Well,"  says  I,  "  there  must  be  something  in  it,  if 
they  address  me  as  'Mr. '  after  so  many  other  names, 

I  opened  the  envelope  and  on  the  inside  found  a 
sheet  of  sheep-skin,  and  on  this  piece  of  parchment, 
filled  in  with  Clerk  Hall's  best  fist,  were  the  following 
words : — 


152      SEVENTH  CAV ALRY 


ARMY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

To  whom  it  may  concern:— 

Know  ye,  that  Ami  F.  Mulford,  a  Trumpeter  of 
Captain  T.  H.  French's  Company  "  M,"  of  the  Seventh 
(7)  Regiment  of  Cavalry,  who  was  enlisted  the  Fifth 
day  of  September,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
seventy-six,  to  serve  five  years,  is  hereby  discharged 
from  the  service  of  the  United  States  in  consequence 
of  Surgeon's  Certificate  of  Disability. 

Said  Ami  F.  Mulford  was  born  in  Murdston, 
County  —  [this  is  a  clerical  error,  it  should  read, 
THURSTON,  Steuben  County}  —in  the  State  of  New 
York,  is  23  7-12  years  of  age,  five  feet  five  inches 
high,  light  complexion,  blue  eyes,  light  hair,  and  by 
accupation  when  enlisted,  a  clerk. 

Given    under    my   hand  at  Fort  Rice,  D.  T.,  this 
eighteenth  day  of  December,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-seven. 
[  Signed,]  ELMER  OTIS, 

Lt.-Col.  7th  Cav.  Commanding. 
Character — Excellent. 

[  Signed,]  E.  G.  MATHEY, 

Captain  7th  Cavalry, 
Commanding  Detatchment. 

I  was  no  longer  a  soldier. 

I  am  a  citizen,  and  as  such  as  good  as  any  other 
man,  and  my  own  boss ;  I  can  now  live  or  die,  get  fat 
or  starve  to  death,  and  it  will  be  nobody's  business. 

Free,  independent — yet  crippled  for  life. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  my  final  statement,  had 
it  cashed,  and  with  nearly  two  hundred  dollars  in  an 
inside  pocket,  and  my  left  leg  in  a  sling,  to  keep  it 
from  dragging  on  the  ground,  I  take  my  crutches, 
hobble  to  the  door,  and  am  helped  aboard  the  stage 
that  is  to  take  me  to  Bismarck,  bid  good-bye  to  com 
rades,  and  with  a  last  long  look  at  Fort  Rice,  I  start 
for  God's  country ! 


FIGHTING    INDIANS       153 


CHAPTER  THIRTY-FIVE. 

The  Westward  Drive  of  the  American  Frontier  Line — A 

Century  of  Indian  Uprisings  Ends  When  Conquest  of 

Natives  is  Completed  by  Surrender  of  Nez  Perces. 

THE  native  occupants  of  North  America,  had  the 
entire  continent  distributed  or  parcelled  out,  among 
the  various  tribes,  so  that  each  knew  the  metes  and 
bounds  of  their  own  territory,  and  understood  that 
to  venture  onto  the  territory  of  another  tribe  was  to 
trespass — that  meant  war.  The  various  Indian  tribes 
had  down  through  the  ages  worked  out  the  practical 
adjustment  of  their  physical  requirements  so  that 
Mother  Earth  provided  for  all.  The  lesser  tribes 
in  some  instances  formed  federations,  for  mutual 
protection  against  invasions  by  stronger  bodies  of 
Indians — as  did  the  Iroquois  tribes  of  New  York  and 
Northwestern  Pennsylvania — the  Mohawks,  Oneidas, 
Onondagas,  Cayugas  and  Senecas.  The  Iroquois 
Federation  was  formed  about  1550.  In  numbers  the 
Senecas  were  far  in  the  lead.  The  Council  House  of 
the  Iroquois  Federation  as  atOnondaga  Lake;  that  of 
the  Senecas  at  Seneca  Castle,  at  the  foot  of  Seneca 
Lake  Each  of  the  affiliated  tribes  had  a  Council  of 
its  own,  and  also  had  equal  representation  at  the 
Federation  Council  Fire  at  Onondaga  Lake. 

A  similar  federation,  composed  of  twelve  tribesr 
about  half  the  total  being  Tuscarora  Indians, 
flourished  in  North  Carolina,  until  they  got  into 
trouble  with  encroaching  whites  about  1710,  and  were 
defeated  in  a  number  of  battles.  In  lj?12  the  Tusca. 
roras,  being  of  Iroquois  blood,  were  admitted  to  mem 
bership  in  the  Iroquois  Federation — before  that  known 
as  the  Five  Nations,  thence  on  termed  the  Six 
Nations.  But  so  nicely  had  the  land  of  the  Federa 
tion  been  adjusted  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the 
original  five  tribes— or  nations — that  no  territory 


154        SEVENTH    CAVALRY 


was  alloted  to  the  Tuscaroras  as  a  tribe,  but  the 
members  were  distributed  among  the  Oneidas,  Onon- 
dagas,  Senecas,  Cayugas  and  Mohawks.  Tuscaroras 
liad  no  voice  in  the  Councils  of  the  Federation. 

The  immediate  purpose  of  the  Iroquois  in  forming 
their  Federation  was  to  stop  invasions  of  their  lands 
by  the  Hurons  and  other  powerful  tribes  of  the  North 
and  Northwest.  In  1612  the  Seneca  country  was  in 
vaded  from  the  north  by  a  .French  army,  bent  on  con 
quest,  accompanied  by  a  large  number  of  Huron 
warriors.  The  Senecas  stood  their  ground  and  re 
pulsed  the  invaders,  inflicting  great  loss.  The  French 
soldiers  were  armed  with  guns ;  the  Senecas  with 
bows  and  arrows,  spears,  war  clubs,  stone  tomahawks 
and  darts  thrown  with  throngs  fastened  to  sticks. 

The  Indians  had  no  written  language.  Property 
in  the  various  tribes  was  held  in  common.  The 
religious  instinct  found  expression  in  many  ways,  in 
the  legends  and  activities  of  all  the  American  Indians. 
They  believed  in  a  Great  Spirit,  supreme  over  all,  the 
source  of  their  being ;  also  in  benificent  spirits  of  less 
degree,  and  in  evil  spirits  who  caused  afflictions  and 
disasters.  To  the  mind  of  an  Indian,  everything  he 
came  in  contact  with,  whether  animate  or  inani  >  ate, 
possessed  spirit  life  and  magic  power.  The  para 
mount  idea  of  their  Faith,  was  a  Happy  Hunting 
Ground,  of  boundless  extent,  above  the  skies ;  a  land 
of  eternal  Summer,  of  peace  and  plenty. 

When  charters  were  granted  the  colonies  of 
Massachusetts  and  of  Connecticut,the  grants  covered 
territory  extending  entirely  across  the  continent 
from  the  Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  Pacific  Ocean ! 

Those  who  fled  from  Old  World  oppressions,  and 
colonized  the  Atlantic  sea  board,  did  not  consider 
that  the  Indians  had  rights  that  should  be  respected. 

Every  effort  on  the  part  of  the  natives,  to  hold  or 
regain  possession  of  land  taken,  by  force  or  artifice, 


FIGHTING   INDIANS        155 

from  them  by  the  invading  whites,  but  hastened  the 
inevitable  end. 

At  a  Treaty  held  in  July,  1755,  called  by  Sir  Wil 
liam  Johnson,  representing  the  English  government, 
with  a  view  to  adjusting  troubles  due  to  encroach 
ments  by  whites  on  hunting  grounds  along  the 
Susquehanna  River,  the  chief  spokesman  of  the  Six 
Nations  said  :— 

"  Brother  :  You  desire  us  to  unite  and  live  togeth 
er,  and  draw  all  our  allies  near  us,  but  we  shall  have 
no  land  left,  either  for  ourselves  or  them,  for  your 
people  when  they  buy  a  small  piece  of  land  of  us,  by 
stealing  they  make  it  large.  We  desire  such  things 
may  not  be  done,  and  that  your  people  may  not  be 
suffered  to  buy  any  more  of  our  land." 

The  encroachments  of  the  whites  on  the  lands  of 
the  Indians,  have  been  unyielding  and  persistent,  and 
the  so-called  Frontier,  extending  from  the  northern  to 
the  southern  bounds  of  this  government,  was 
pushed  westward  from  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  until  it 
was  met  in  the  far  west  by  a  frontier  line  moving 
eastward  from  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  then  came  the 
final  battle  between  United  States  troops,  under 
General  Miles,  and  the  Nez  Perces  warriors  in  the 
Bad-Lands  of  the  Great  Northwest,  where  the  curtain 
was  finally  rung  down,  when  Chief  Joseph  surrender 
ed  to  General  Miles,  October  5th,  1877. 


Second   Edition 

Revised  by  A.  F.  Mulford 

1879. 


f     V 


